Long-lived Salamanders Offer Clues to Aging

[Frog News]

Livescience.com (Utah, USA) July 20th, 2010 06:51 PM: Long-lived Salamanders Offer Clues to Aging

Blind salamanders once thought to be baby dragons can live at least as long as most people, scientists now find. Adults of this species live nearly 69 years on average, with a predicted maximum age of more than 100 years, three times longer than related species

Surprisingly, the long-lived amphibian doesn't seem to have an especially low metabolism nor unusual levels of protective antioxidant molecules to explain why it lives so long. As such, this salamander could help uncover mechanisms that could help keep us young.

The olm or proteus (Proteus anguinus) lives in the limestone caves of southern Europe. The amphibian is sometimes confusingly known as the "human fish" — "fish" because it lives its entire life in the water, and "human" because its pink skin resembles that of nearby people.

The olm has atrophied eyes and virtually no skin pigment — both adaptations to its largely lightless existence. Due to their snake-like bodies, these small amphibians were once thought to be baby dragons.

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