GENETIC ENGINEERING: AGING/IMMORTALITY?

Question

ANIMALS ARE CAPABLE ON CELLULAR REGENERATION BECAUSE OF THE GENES THAT MAKE IT POSSIBLE. SCIENTISTS STILL DON'T KNOW THE GENETIC CODE THAT MAKE CELL REGENERATION POSSIBLE. IF THE SCIENTISTS DISCOVERED THE GENE AND INSERTED TO HUMAN AND THAT HUMAN HAD THE ABILITY TO REGENERATE ITS CELLS, CAN CELL REGENERATION MAKE US IMMORTAL IN AGING?

Answer 1

Urodele amphibians (salamanders) such as the axolotl are archetypical examples of species with great regenerative capability.  Among mammals, MRL mice are a notable strain, for which 36 genes have been identified that may be responsible for their much greater ability to regenerate tissues than other mice.

If the goal is immortality, then there are at least two equally viable paths:  (1) Genetic engineering, such as splicing DNA strands identified in the Salamander Genome Project into the human genome; or (2) molecular biochemistry, whereby we discover the molecular basis of regeneration, and then use chemical approaches to increase longevity (i.e., a prescription drug is developed that prevents aging).

In any event, the genetic programming of aging or senescence involves a multiplicity of genes (i.e., polygenic inheritance), so achieving immortality will require the splicing of a myriad of genes into our genome, or the administration of a legion of anti-aging pharmaceuticals.

Answer 2

Yes  

Answer 3

Developmental biologists do know some of the genes involved in regeneration in amphibians, which can regrow lost limbs in a matter of days. We still have these genes (as we didn't split off from amphibians all that long ago in evolutionary terms), but they have either become silenced, or involved in an entirely different pathway. We would require far more understanding of human development (something which is pretty much ethically impossible to research) and aging in order to use this knowledge in the way you're suggesting, and even then i think it is unlikely to be possible.