Long-lived mutants and healthy aging

Cynthia Kenyon is a scientist at UCSF who uses C. elegans to study how animals age and how changing genes can make them live longer, more active lives.  One reason this field generates so much excitement is the hope that conserved genes, that is genes that are shared by worms and humans, operate in a similar way and that we might one day understand them well enough to intervene in human ageing and significantly extend our healthy lifespan.  In worms at least, this extension can be dramatic.  Watch the TED talk for more:

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