Genetic entrepreneur to compete in Genomics X Prize

By Helen Briggs

BBC News

A race to unlock genetic clues behind living to 100 is set to begin next year, after a US team announced it will compete for the $10m Genomics X Prize.

Genetic entrepreneur Dr Jonathan Rothberg is entering the challenge to identify genes linked to a long, healthy life.

His team - and any other contenders - will be given 30 days to work out the full DNA code of 100 centenarians at a cost of no more than $1,000 per genome.

The race will start in September 2013.

Under the rules of the Archon Genomics X Prize, teams have until next May to register for the competition.

Dr Rothberg's team from Life Technologies Corporation in California is the first to formally enter the race.

Being able to sequence the full human genome at a cost of $1,000 or less is regarded as a milestone in science.

It is seen as the threshold at which DNA sequencing technology becomes cheap enough to be used widely in medicine, helping in diagnosis and in matching drugs to a patient's genetic make-up.

One hundred people aged 100 have donated their DNA for the project.

Scientists believe people who reach a very old age may have certain rare changes in their genes which protect against common diseases of later life, such as heart disease and cancer.

If these genes can be identified by analysing the DNA codes of centenarians, it will help scientists search for new medical treatments and perhaps ways to prolong life.

However, many sample DNA sequences will be needed in order to get the accuracy needed to pinpoint changes on the scale of a few genetic letters among the three billion in the human genome.

Dr Jonathan Rothberg, a geneticist and entrepreneur, said the DNA of 100 centenarians is a good start towards finding "the fountains of youth".

He told BBC News: "One hundred people will give you a hint. One thousand will make you reasonably sure. Ten thousand will let you say, 'Hey, these are the genes involved in cancer or heart disease'".

Dr Craig Venter is the originator of the prize and one of the main players in the race to sequence the first human genome, which was completed in 2003.

He said he could never have imagined that genome sequencing would come this far in so little time.

He told the BBC: "I can't emphasise [enough] how impressed I am with the progress of technology and the dropping of the cost.

"If they can do a human genome in two hours with one little machine, it's just stunning. We have come a long way."

The X Prize Foundation offers awards for solutions to modern scientific challenges, from space to the human genome.

Any data gleaned from the X Prize will be shared with other scientists in the field, to aid the quest for insights into ageing.

You have read this article Genetics / Research and Studies with the title Genetics. You can bookmark this page URL https://chrisinha-belezaestilo.blogspot.com/2012/07/genetic-entrepreneur-to-compete-in.html. Thanks!

Norwalk woman's secret to long life: Good genes and vegetables

By CHASE WRIGHT

Hour Staff Writer

NORWALK -- The natural rules of aging don't apply to Frederica Cenatiempo, who celebrated her 100th birthday on Wednesday over dinner and dancing -- her two favorite pastimes.

"I love dancing and I love eating," the sprightly Cenatiempo said with a smile. "I love just about everything." 

The longtime Norwalk resident quietly celebrated her 100th birthday with her husband, Alfredo.

However, the couple plans to commemorate the occasion with a blowout birthday bash this Sunday at the South Norwalk Boat Club, where the guest of honor will be seated at the head table, dressed in a ruby red gown and tiara.

"You don't get to celebrate 100 years everyday," said her husband of 64 years, Alfredo Cenatiempo. "I figured I'd go out of my way because she deserves every bit of it. She's a wonderful person, and I'm so proud that she's lived so long."

Cenatiempo credits his wife's longevity to good genes, an active lifestyle and a diet that consists of 80 percent vegetables.

"You have to be careful what you put in your body," he said. "We don't use too much pork, too much grease." 

Genetics have clearly contributed to Cenatiempo's long life and age-defying appearance. She is the oldest of four girls -- ages 97, 95 and 86 --all of whom are still living.

"God don't want me up there," Cenatiempo says, pointing to the heavens. "He's keeping me down here." 

A native of Brooklyn, N.Y., Cenatiempo moved to Norwalk when she was 5 years old after her father found the city on a Sunday afternoon while in search of a waterfront destination.

He took the train to Washington Street in South Norwalk, where he spent the afternoon fishing from the pier with a man who would later become a lifelong friend.

"When he went home, he says to his wife, 'We got to go live in Norwalk,'" Alfredo Cenatiempo said through a heavy Italian accent. "That's how they came here."

Cenatiempo, 87, has a different story: He met his wife in Italy while she was on vacation visiting her family in the southwestern city of Salerno.

"Naturally, we got acquainted and fell in love," he said.

The couple was married on Jan. 11, 1948, inside a small church in Cenatiempo's hometown of Piedimonte, a small village located on the island of Ischia. They moved to Norwalk the following year, had two children, and later opened a hair salon -- Alfredo's -- on North Main Street, which closed in 1997.

The Cenatiempos have spent their retirement traveling between Norwalk and Florida, where both their sons have families.

Frederica said the entire family will come together on Sunday to celebrate her 100th birthday. There will be dinner, cake, and of course, dancing.

"I'm looking forward to it," she said.

You have read this article Genetics / Healthy Eating / Old Age / Vegetables with the title Genetics. You can bookmark this page URL https://chrisinha-belezaestilo.blogspot.com/2012/07/norwalk-woman-secret-to-long-life-good.html. Thanks!