The maximum age of humans, and other mammalian species, could be predicted from tissue samples
Luke MacGregor/Alamy
We might have found a new way to extend the lifespan of many mammals, including people.
A study of 15,000 tissue samples from 348 mammal species has shown it is possible to predict their maximum lifespan by looking for the presence or absence of labels known as epigenetic markers at specific sites in the genome. What’s more, these could be causal. That is, altering the epigenetic markers might increase maximum lifespans.
“I do think it is quite possible,” says …