The role of proteins in the transmission of hereditary longevity: a groundbreaking study in Science

The longevity can be inherited, and there is no need to modify the DNA. This is stated by research published in the journal Science and led by the US medical institute Howard Hughes. The study, conducted on Caenorhabditis elegans - a small, transparent worm that has been a role model for geneticists for decades - revealed a novel mechanism of transmission of hereditary traits that could change the way we look at biology.

Scientists co-ordinated by Meng Wang genetically modified worms to produce more of an enzyme that is useful for lysosomes, the cell organelles that function as recycling centres. This intervention extended the life span of the animals by up to 60%. But the real surprise came with the next generation: the worms' offspring lived longer than average despite not possessing the mutation.

At that point, the researchers realised that there had to be another transmission channel, distinct from the DNA. The key was found in histones, proteins around which genetic material is wound. These molecules can carry chemical 'tags' that regulate the switching on or off of genes. According to the study, changes in lysosomes are transferred from normal to reproductive cells via histones, which do not change the genetic sequence, but modulate its expression.

The implications go beyond simply increasing longevity. Indeed, the study describes a new way in which biological information can be passed on from one generation to the next, outside the classical rules of genetics. A discovery that opens up questions about how much more there is to discover about how our hereditary heritage works.