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June 22nd, 2015 
David Schulberg 
Humans’ search for the fountain of youth is nothing new – but now we may be one step closer to finding it. Swedish scientists say that starfish age at a slower rate if they reproduce through cloning, rather than sexually.
Unlike humans, starfish
can reproduce through cloning or sexually. But those who create
offspring the old-fashioned way are at a disadvantage when it
comes to aging, according to researchers at the University of
Gothenburg in Sweden.
READ MORE: Cloned antibody shows promise for HIV
patients
The
reason for this has been located in a starfish’s telomeres –
lengths of DNA found at the ends of chromosomes. They protect
genetic data and make it possible for cells to divide.
Each time a cell divides, telomeres shorten in length. As they
shorten, aging occurs.
But when starfish use cloning as a method of reproduction, newly
formed tissue emerges longer than the old tissue.
“You can say that there is a rejuvenation of the telomere
when new tissue is formed during cloning as opposed to sexual
reproduction,” said Nilsson Sköld, one of the researchers
behind the study, as quoted by The Local.
The key ingredient that allows for the rejuvenation is an enzyme
known as telomaris, which regulates telomeres in the cloning
process. It is absent when sexual reproduction takes place.
In 2011, Sköld found that sea squirts that reproduce by cloning
are also capable of activating the enzyme.
“My research has shown that sea squirts rejuvenate themselves
by activating the enzyme telomerase, and in this way extending
their chromosomes and protecting their DNA,” Sköld explained
at the time.
As for now, starfish will have to be the only known species to
benefit from this fountain of youth, as humans have yet to be
cloned. But who knows what the future holds?
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Fountain of youth? Starfish age slower when they reproduce by cloning, research says
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