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Science 30 October 1998:
Vol. 282. no. 5390, p. 856
DOI: 10.1126/science.282.5390.856a
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News of the Week

AGING RESEARCH:
Single Gene Controls Fruit Fly Life-Span

Elizabeth Pennisi

On page 943, a research team reports the discovery of a gene that when mutated allows fruit flies to live up to 35% longer than normal fruit flies. Many researchers had believed that in most species aging results from the haphazard buildup of damaging mutations in individual cells, but this finding provides new evidence that aging is regulated by genes. The discovery also bolsters the idea that molecular stresses such as tissue-damaging free radicals contribute to aging, because the mutant methuselah gene also improves the flies' ability to withstand stress.

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Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)