The centuries-long search for the fountain of youth has
yielded only a few promising leads, one of which entails an extreme, emaciating
diet. A new study of the tiny nematode worm C. elegans begins to explain this
marvel of calorie restriction and hints at an easier way to achieve longevity.
Researchers at Duke University found that taking food away
from C. elegans triggers a state of arrested development: while the organism
continues to wriggle about, foraging for food, its cells and organs are
suspended in an ageless, quiescent state. When food becomes plentiful again,
the worm develops as planned, but can live twice as long as normal.