“Newborn baby boy and
girl. Scientists are beginning to understand one of life's enduring mysteries
-- why women live, on average, longer than men. (Credit: © Barbara Helgason /
Fotolia)”
The
article I read talks about a study on how men live shorter lives then women. As
you can see the answer to the study is in the title, “It’s in our Genes: Why
Women outlive Men”. At the Monash University their research tells us “how
mutations in the DNA of the mitochondria can account for differences in the
life expectancy of males and females.” The mitochondria mutation is the reason
why women can outlive men. Of course everyone in B period Biology knows why the
mitochondrion is so important to the body. It’s important because it converts
the food we eat into energy that our body needs.
Looking at fruit flies, Dr. Damian Dowling and PhD student Florencia Camus and Dr. David Claney discovered, “uncovered differences in longevity and biological aging across male and female fruit flies that carried mitochondria of different origins”. They believe the “genetic variation across these mitochondria were reliable predictors of life expectancy in males, but not in females.”
Based on the research, it states that the mitochondrial mutations will cause “faster male aging across the animal kingdom”. The mutations in the mitochondria happen as a result of a “quirk” in how the mitochondria genes are “passed down from parents to their offspring”, Since the mitochondria genes come from the mother. If a mutation doesn’t affect the mother, it could as generations go on affect a future generation. Dr. Dowling states, “Over thousands of generations, many such mutations have accumulated that only harm males, while leaving females unscathed”.
The research shows that the mitochondria are “hotspots for mutations affecting male health”. Currently, research is being done to try to find ways for males to “arm themselves” genetically to stop the effects of these mutations.
Wow! Does this mean in B period Biology, which is made up of 8 females and 10 males, we females will outlive our male classmates? It won’t be true all the time as other factors contribute to our life expectancy. How about what we put into our bodies? Proper diet and exercise can only add to a healthier longer life. (Again, everyone should read “Fast Food Nation”.) To me, this study assumes every person’s life has the same exposure to stress and the environment. Science can’t predict every outcome but I’m sure glad they’re trying.
Looking at fruit flies, Dr. Damian Dowling and PhD student Florencia Camus and Dr. David Claney discovered, “uncovered differences in longevity and biological aging across male and female fruit flies that carried mitochondria of different origins”. They believe the “genetic variation across these mitochondria were reliable predictors of life expectancy in males, but not in females.”
Based on the research, it states that the mitochondrial mutations will cause “faster male aging across the animal kingdom”. The mutations in the mitochondria happen as a result of a “quirk” in how the mitochondria genes are “passed down from parents to their offspring”, Since the mitochondria genes come from the mother. If a mutation doesn’t affect the mother, it could as generations go on affect a future generation. Dr. Dowling states, “Over thousands of generations, many such mutations have accumulated that only harm males, while leaving females unscathed”.
The research shows that the mitochondria are “hotspots for mutations affecting male health”. Currently, research is being done to try to find ways for males to “arm themselves” genetically to stop the effects of these mutations.
Wow! Does this mean in B period Biology, which is made up of 8 females and 10 males, we females will outlive our male classmates? It won’t be true all the time as other factors contribute to our life expectancy. How about what we put into our bodies? Proper diet and exercise can only add to a healthier longer life. (Again, everyone should read “Fast Food Nation”.) To me, this study assumes every person’s life has the same exposure to stress and the environment. Science can’t predict every outcome but I’m sure glad they’re trying.
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Final Grade (You may remove this comment at your discretion): Aware +