Scientists have reversed the effects of ageing in mice using a new technique that takes their cells back to embryonic form.
The technique, which involves stimulating four genes that are particularly active during the animals' development in the womb, made the mice "look younger" and exhibit muscle regeneration, say researchers at the Salk Institute in California.
However, the effects were not only cosmetic - they also lived 30 per cent longer than usual.
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A similar test on human skin cells "provides insight both into the cellular drivers of ageing and possible therapeutic approaches for improving human health and longevity", says Salk.
The result "shows that ageing may not have to proceed in one single direction," the institute's Dr Juan Carlos Izpisua Belmonte said.
He added: "Obviously, mice are not humans and we know it will be much more complex to rejuvenate a person. But this study shows that ageing is a very dynamic and plastic process, and therefore will be more amenable to therapeutic interventions than what we previously thought."
According to the Daily Telegraph, scientists hope to use the technique to create a drug that can "slow down, and even reverse the ageing process", although human trials could take upwards of ten years to begin.
If the technique works, it is predicted it could help people regularly live past 100.
