Humans 'could live for hundreds of years' as scientists crack DNA code

A bombshell scientific discovery could hold the key to prolonging human life, new research has found. Scientists have cracked the DNA code of the longest living mammal - the bowhead whale. It can live for more than 200 years thanks to the CIRBP protein in the ocean, that helps the species rebuild damaged DNA. The "cold-inducible RNA-binding protein", or the CIRBP, allows the 80-tonne creature to keep cancers at bay.

After identifying the powerful protein, scientists at the University of Rochester in New York added it to human cells, discovering that they mended themselves more accurately. When they added the protein to fruit flies, it even prolonged their lives.

"This research shows it is possible to live longer than the typical human lifespan," Professor Vera Gorbunova, who lead the study, said.

Working with scientists in Alaska, the Rochester team also discovered that lower temperatures seem to enhance the CIRBP protein.

While it is too soon to say how the discovery translates to humans, Gorbunova suggested that it would be worth exploring how to boost the human body's CIRBP activity. Hypothetically, lifestyle changes such as cold showers or cold-temperature exposure could work.

"There are different ways to improve genome maintenance and here we learn there is one unique way that evolved in bowhead whales where they dramatically increase the levels of this protein," Gorbunova said. "Now we have to see if we can develop strategies to upregulate the same pathway in humans."

For now, these ideas are hypothetical.

When cells divide, they replicate their DNA for the daughter cells, but errors in the sequence can cause mutations that may lead to tumours. The question of why large mammals don't develop cancer as frequently, despite having many dividing cells, is a biological mystery known as Peto's paradox. Now, the scientists know the whales experienced fewer cancer-causing mutations due to CIRBP.

The protein can help repair breakages in the stands of DNA, this being the most dangerous form of genetic damage. bowhead whales can fix their cells better than humans can, allowing their DNA to stay intact for longer periods of time.

The team will now test whether the protein can perform in smaller, shorter-lived mammals as it does in the 20-metre whale.