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Why do I have to learn about DNA? Why is that required knowledge? I had a student – a graduate student, no less – ask me this, years ago. “Why do I have to learn THAT?” he said. Let’s talk about why learning about DNA (and science in general) is important. Let’s talk about Kevin.
This post is also a video! Check it out on YouTube.
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You can also view this post in Video Format!
If we can kill off the senescent cells in our body, we will grow younger. This paper by Poblacka and associates describes a way to accomplish that… in cells in a dish. But it’s an important step and I’ll explain why. I want to go through a peer-reviewed paper I found really interesting. It’s about a new technique to kill senescent cells and it’s a step toward managing, slowing, or even stopping the aging process.
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This post also appears on my youtube channel for long-form essays. Here’s the link.
Today, we’re diving into the world of longevity research – examining the supplements Nicotinamide Riboside (NR) and Nicotinamide Mononucleotide (NMN). There’s buzz about them on the internet and in the scientific literature. I see ads, I see sponsored studies. The big question is: are these pills worth the money – will they buy a human a few extra youthful years – or is it just an unregulated supplement cash grab? It all comes down to making hard choices with incomplete information. Like our mouse friend in the comic.
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Hello my fellow scientists. I just put up a video about 4 topics to share. If you want your blog in video form, it’s available on YouTube.
1. New essay (last week’s post) about parabiosis and vampirism. It’s super creepy.
2. Loneliness
3. A short story recommendation about a fictional app that makes people happy. It’s so good.
4. Reverse centaurs – a term for our time – and “Sludge content”
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In the study of longevity, researchers turned to a macabre and shocking experiment called parabiosis where two animals are sewn together. It turns out that if you connect an old mouse to a young mouse, the old mouse grows young again. Nobody likes animal research (and content warning, obviously, this will be gross but not explicit). But, for now, understanding biology means we need to study live animals. And this study revealed something important, even if it sounds like some weird vampire stuff. This essay is also available in YouTube form.
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Dr. Peter B Allen - Lab Blog 
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