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2007-03-15
By flicking through the latest GSAAM (German Society of Anti-Aging-Medicine (Journal I) came across a book title reading: 'The End of Aging' (German Title: 'Das Ende des Alterns'). (1, 2)
Normally, it is not worth reading such or similar titled books. As a rule,
most of them are shallow, mostly holding platitudes, and moreover are copied
from one another.
At this book, however, it was the name of the principal author that caused me
to read it:
author is Johannes C. Huber, Prof. Dr. theol. Dr. med. He is one of the leading
'brains' of both the GSAAM and ESAAM (European Society of Anti-Aging Medicine).
(3)
Huber has studied medicine and theology, and he is the Head of The Department
of Gynaecology, University of Vienna; he also ranks among the leading hormone
specialists in Europe; his congress lectures are absolute highlights and others
scarcely are able to come up to them. (4)
Besides profound medical knowledge he is also equipped with well founded knowledge
in philosophy, history, molecular biology and physics.
As anticipated my expectations were not disappointed.
Like the many other 'Anti-Aging books', Huber in 10 chapters discusses the 'standard strategies' (like control of free radicals, hormone replacement, calorie reduction, cancer prevention, life style, stem cells etc.). But - he is doing it in a much more sophisticated manner and in a greater depth, very precisely deducing and explaining the involved cellular processes.
Despite its sophistication and complexity the book is easily understandable for the medical layman. It is definitely recommendable, and it should clearly be given preference before the many other books on this topic.
But – the book has more than 'The Usual':
In two passages one reads exceptional:
The book begins with the media-renown clone sheep Dolly when her “father”
Ian Wilmut was awarded the €100.000 (!!) Paul-Ehrlich- and Ludwig-Darmstaedter
prize at St. Paul´s Church, Frankfurt/Main Germany, in March 2005. (13)
The 1944 Hampton Lucey, England, born Ian Wilmut, is generally considered the
“famous” clone sheep´s ' ”spiritual father”.
The prize is awarded by the Paul-Ehrlich-Foundation (14). Its Honorary President
is no less than the German Federal President (Prof. Köhler) – and the Foundation´s
chairman is no less than the former Deutsche Bank CEO Hilmar Kopper. (5)
The award is something very special and it is of enormous international reputation.
The Frankfurt St. Paul´s church – the Paulskirche – was opened in 1789,exactly
the year of the French Revolution. In 1848 - 1849 the Paulskirche became the
place of the German National Assembly which worked on the development of a constitution
for a united Germany. This effort, however, has been destroyed by Prussia and
Austria and a number of smaller German Kingdoms and duchesses. After 1852, the
church was again used for church services. After World War II when the church
was rebuilt after being destroyed –rebuilt as the first building in Frankfurt
– it became a place of the annual awarding of the Peace Prize of the German
Book Trade during the Frankfurt Book Faire. In 1963, US President John F. Kennedy
gave a major speech in the Paulskirche during his Germany visit.
During the ceremony of the Paul-Ehrlich-Prize, the laureate, Ian Wilmut,
not only was showered with Euros but also with eulogies. The astonished reader
is questioning himself: 'Why he of all people - the 'inventor' of cloning -
is awarded where cloning was portrayed in an extremely negative light by the
media for so many years'?
At this point, 'Dolly´s secret' enters the plot: since - the whole thing was
not at all about cloning.
The cloning was and still is a mere side stage (a 'smoke screen') that -
according to Huber - 'has been converted into a main stage in order not to be
forced to discuss the entire consequences of the deciphering of the aging process.'
(2)
Huber goes further by saying: 'Since the real discovery of the 'Dolly' experiment
which is turning upside down every biological knowledge has been concealed from
the people until today – either fully deliberately or simply in order not to
make them anxious.' (2)
Wilmut himself, as well, in an interview has intimated that the 'Dolly case'
was not at all about cloning but 'about measures …inducing the re-programming
of the cell nucleus.' (6, 7)
What then were the initial goals of Wilmut and his team?
The initial plan was to transfer a human gene, producing a blood coagulation
factor, into the DNA of a sheep udder cell (a procedure known as 'gene splicing').
The sheep then would have started to produce a human-identical coagulation factor
which simply could be 'harvested' out of the sheep milk.
Besides, the idea is not new: e. g. for many years, human-identical insulin
and growth hormone is being produced by bacteria bearing the respective human
genes - 'spliced' into their own - bacterial DNA.
What have Wilmut and his team done technically?
First they isolated the cell nucleus (containing the somatic, adult DNA)
out of an udder cell of an adult sheep. The genetic code of this somatic adult
cell is determined to produce milk.
The isolated nucleus then was transferred into a previously de-nucleated egg
cell (ovum).
The scientists hoped that the milk production of the adult cells would increase
by this measure.
But – something very strange and very different occurred: instead of producing
more milk the somatic udder cell DNA was transformed all the way back of its
former development and ended as the embryonic DNA that it once developed from.
This in fact is something that has not yet been said publicly in this consequence:
out of an old cell an embryo can arise again! All of the elapsed biological
time of a somatic cell has been set back? Whereby, though?
By 'magic proteins' as Huber is quoting the 'Science' editor Gretchen Vogel.
These 'magic' substances are what the story is about.
Writes Huber (2): 'It is the ingredients in this biological nourishing liquid, flowing around the maternal ovum, that account for the capability of transforming an old cell into a young, to rock back the course of time, and to replace age by youth. How this happens and how the code of aging once for all can be deciphered – that is basically understood by the scientists since the time of the Dolly experiments.' (Emphasis by author)
Doubtless the facts about this code are also known by the Paul-Ehrlich-Foundation
members as well as several politicians (The German Health Ministry gave half
of the prize money) and the Foundation´s sponsored the other half (8, 9).
Yet, regrettably, the public nothing knows - and overtly it is left clueless
and uniformed about the further goals:
Since then Wilmut has great feats in mind: he has had British Governmental approval to clone human embryos (10) and he is – by his own quote – 'on the quest for the magic protein, a protein of still unknown matter that dwells in the ovum and that ensures, so to speak, to reset the hands of the biological clock.'
Says Wilmut in the German newspaper ('Die Zeit') interview:
'Some day we will have learned how to manipulate it (adult DNA) in a deliberate
way. Blood cells from patients, e.g. Parkinson patients, will be taken and rejuvenated
to a state where they are able to regenerate - (a state) that not necessarily
has to stretch back to an embryonic state.' (11) (Emphasis and addition by author).
Apart from 'e.g. Parkinson patients' the 'Cell-Age-Reset-Elixir' could unfold
its effects of course in healthy persons, too – e.g. in form of a fresh-up for
perished organs after a long 'service time'. By doing this - using this rejuvenated
cell material - the 'service life' of the human body could be surely substantially
prolonged.
PS1
That this is a matter that the story also is about, Wilmut has indirectly announced
during the awarding ceremony, saying: he is willing to spend the € 100.000 on
research on incurable diseases. (12)
Does not age-related fading of inner organs fall into the category 'incurable',
too?
Why should only the survival time of incurable people be prolonged and that
of healthy elder people not?
1) http://www.gsaam.de/
2) Huber J, Buchacher R: Das Ende des Alterns. Berlin, Econ, 2005.
3) http://www.esaam.com/
4) http://www.drhuber.at/index.html
5)
http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paul-Ehrlich-und-Ludwig-Darmstaedter-Preis
6)
http://archiv.tagesspiegel.de/archiv/25.06.2003/628301.asp
7)
http://www.berlinonline.de/berliner-zeitung/archiv/.bin/dump.fcgi/2003/0626/wissenschaft/0212/index.htm
8) http://www.oedp-bayern.de/presse/pm678.html
9)
http://www.spiegel.de/wissenschaft/mensch/0,1518,346397,00.html
10)
http://www.cdl-online.de/aktuel/a-2005/210205.htm
11)
http://www.wissenschaft-online.de/artikel/772812
12) http://www.zeit.de/2005/11/Ian_Wilmut?page=6
13)
http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Frankfurter_Paulskirche
14)
http://www.paul-ehrlich-stiftung.de/Dok/Paul-Ehrlich-Broschuere_englisch.pdf
(C) 2007 Prof. Hotze