Proteins which prevent cancer in humans by ensuring that cells don’t divide if they have chromosomal damage have been shown to determine lifespan in the nematode worm C. elegans. A Buck Institute study, appearing in the June 2nd issue of the journal Science, shows that checkpoint proteins, traditionally thought only to be functional in cells that divide, are also active in cells that no longer divide. The fact that the proteins appear to have dual functions opens a new way to study the connection between aging and cancer.
