What does the average person dream about? About wealth, fame, career, or in extreme cases about the ideal life partner. At the same time, all people have one common dream. We want to live forever!
Who among us would not like to stop the aging process somewhere between 25 and 35 years of our lives? The alchemists of the Middle Ages speculated on this desire, the swindlers of our time speculate, and serious scientists, no, no, yes, they will mention another theory of eternal life. And any scientific discovery in this area is received with great enthusiasm and hope.
ETERNAL MEDUSA
Among the very short list of living creatures whose life drags on for an amazingly long time, only the Turritopsis Nutricula jellyfish has the possibility of true immortality. It turned out that this organism can die only from external influences. Moreover, this mysterious species of jellyfish not only can live forever, but also does not age!
If biologists find a way to convey the most important qualities of immortal jellyfish to people, passionate natures should rejoice most of all, since Turritopsis Nutricula jellyfish grow younger immediately after the mating process, simply put, an act of love in human understanding.
Rejuvenating intercourse in this species of jellyfish can occur as many times as you like. It is surprising that, according to the observations of the same scientists, absolutely all other types of jellyfish die after mating.
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A careful study of Turritopsis Nutricula has led to the understanding that there is nothing supernatural in their bodies. The thing is that jellyfish cells have the ability to transform, since by their nature they are stem cells. In small quantities, humans also have these cells, and modern medicine has long and successfully used them in cosmetic procedures.
Despite the small size of this unique species of jellyfish (4-5 mm in diameter), scientists are seriously concerned about the huge population growth of these creatures. So, Dr. Maria Migilietta from the Smithsonian Institute for Tropical Research believes that immortal jellyfish have already begun to capture the waters of the oceans, thereby disrupting the balance of the biosphere.
COLLEAGUES IN IMMORTALITY
Despite the fact that only Turritopsis Nutricula are officially recognized as immortal creatures, there are other contenders for this honorary title in the world.
The eternally young hydras follow. It is noteworthy that if mankind learned about the immortality of jellyfish relatively recently, then scientists started talking about the fact that hydras are unique in terms of life expectancy back in the 19th century. At the end of the 20th century, scientists experimentally proved that hydras never age.
They die either from diseases or from the fact that they are corny eaten. Another interesting feature of hydras is their breeding method. These are probably the only creatures in the world that can reproduce both independently and with the help of a partner. At the same time, scientists also know both heterosexual hydras and hermaphrodite hydras.
The next contender for eternity is one of the favorite delicacies of the richest people in the world - lobster. And few gourmets who cleverly cut these sea dwellers with tongs know that lobsters have self-healing DNA. In fact, this means that they could live forever if not for people, illness and accidents.
Scientists have looked for internal causes in the lobster's body that could lead to their death, but in vain. With age, their excellent appetite does not subside, reproductive function works well, there is no decline in strength or deterioration in health. As a result, biologists admitted that the only cause of death of a lobster can only be some external factor, which in 99% of cases are fishermen.
Another long-liver among the inhabitants of the deep sea is the sea urchin. Scientists from the University of Oregon have found fantastic features in sea urchins. After lengthy research, it turned out that the sea urchin, like the lobster, not only does not age, but, for example, at the age of one hundred has the same abilities as at the age of ten.
The cause of his death is also not natural death during aging, but exclusively diseases, sea predators and fishermen! Interestingly, for a long time it was believed that sea urchins live on average no more than 10-15 years.
However, later, in the 1950s, it turned out that the age of sea urchins can be determined not by the state of the body, but only by the size of the hedgehog itself. The larger the sea urchin, the older it is, and it does not stop growing throughout its life! So, for example, sea urchins with a diameter of 20 cm have been exchanged for two hundred years.
Skeptics may argue that lobsters are a popular delicacy, so their population, despite immortality, is small, but why have sea urchins, with endless life and excellent reproductive function, still not completely captured the seas and oceans? The answer is simple - it's all about the value of their caviar.
The Japanese, who annually consume more than 500 tons of sea urchin caviar, are ready to buy it in any quantity.
In fact, this is not exactly caviar, these are his sex glands. The inhabitants of the Land of the Rising Sun became addicted to them many centuries ago and are eaten both raw and fried, boiled and even pickled.
But the main thing is not taste at all. Experts call these glands "sea ginseng". And studies have proved that they contain the most valuable biologically active substances that have a beneficial effect on blood pressure, cardiovascular activity, cure thyroid diseases, increase the potency and resistance of the body to various kinds of infections, and even remove radionuclides from the body!
Moreover, a number of scientists believe that the world's highest average life expectancy of the Japanese - 89 years - is associated precisely with an addiction to this product.
ETERNAL DIGGER
But not only the abyss of seas and oceans is capable of bestowing eternal life. In Africa, there are also land non-aging animals. The most studied African underground rodent is the naked mole rat. Isn't it a wonderful nickname for a creature that in its essence resembles our native mole of central Russia?
According to scientists from the University of Rochester, this amazing animal never grows old and does not get cancer! Naked mole rats live in savannas and semi-deserts of countries such as Somalia, Ethiopia or Kenya. They are usually no larger than an average mouse in size. True, unlike mice, which live only about 2-3 years, they sometimes reach the age of 30 or more years.
Externally, naked mole rats fully and completely justify their name, because they look like newly born little rats. The only difference is that, even as adults, the mole rats are not covered with hair.
After examining adults of naked mole rats, scientists were surprised to note that they completely lack signs of aging, such as muscle flabbiness, impaired reproduction or bone disease.
It turned out that the whole thing is in telomeres - the terminal regions of chromosomes. Due to their presence in naked mole rats, cellular aging does not occur. At the same time, interestingly, in ordinary mice and a number of other animals, the presence of this enzyme causes cancer and premature death, but, on the contrary, it helps naked mole rats to maintain eternal youth.
In the course of long-term experiments, it turned out that the body of the naked mole rat also contains hyaluronic acid, which, despite the active cell division, protects the animal from cancer. There is this acid in the human body.
The difference is that in the naked mole rat it is high molecular weight, while in humans it is low molecular weight. It turned out that when high molecular weight hyaluronic acid is added to human cells, aging processes are slowed down and the risk of cancer is significantly reduced!
Today, scientists continue to research the naked mole rat and high molecular weight hyaluronic acid, hoping that in the very near future, on the basis of these studies, a drug will be created that will give a person not only eternal youth, but also life without cancer.
Dmitry SOKOLOV