Throughout human history, people have been looking for ways to elongate their lives. Whether it was the elixir of life, the fountain of youth, or the philosopher's stone, humans have been obsessed with the idea of immortality and eternity. Now, science has a suggestion that could possibly be a solution to that problem. Researchers suggest that blocking certain 'jumping genes' can be the key to increase our lifespan. Obviously, at one point or another, we're all bound to return to the dust, it's just a fact of life, but we can at the very least, see a couple more generations down the line with this.
Scientists who have been looking for answers to the question of immortality were inspired by certain species that seemingly appear immortal like the immortal jellyfish, which can reverse its life cycle if injured or hurt. The hydra is also capable of self-renewal with its store of stem cells which it uses to regrow missing body parts. So, they have looked to genetics to try and find the secret to immortality in humans, and think that transposons or these 'jumping genes' may be the holy grail for human immortality. Whether or not, we can reach ages beyond 150 years again is too difficult of an ask, but this may be the start of the quest for longer lives.
Of course, whether or not it's actually good to live for that long is another discussion entirely, since if our bodies will be shriveled by then, and we won't have the energy or the physical capability to enjoy life at that age, then it would all be for nought. So, let's see what the future has in store.
(Image credit: Warren Umoh/Unsplash)
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