The use of low frequency ultrasound could have regenerative effects on living organisms. Not only do they seem to reactivate the ability to divide cells in aging human cells, but they also "invigorated" aged mice, improving their physical performance in tests such as running on a treadmill and restoring their elasticity, even when suffering from back problems .
"We often wonder if this is really possible," he says Michael Sheetz of the University of Texas Medical Branch. "We are planning a human trial to understand if low-frequency ultrasound is safe and if it can help in the treatment of diseases related to aging."
"Rejuvenating" low-frequency ultrasound: what is the discovery
The cells of our body have a sort of "expiration": after a certain number of times, known as Hayflick limit, stop replicating and become senescent. There are external factors that can accelerate this process: stress, exposure to chemical agents and more. And when that happens, it goes badly, because it can trigger a snowball effect: senescent cells in turn release chemicals that increase inflammation and lead to other senescent cells. At that point, aging and its diseases are rampant.
Among the research that various laboratories in the world do to counteract ageing, Sheetz's search popped up. His team used low-frequency ultrasound (below 100 kilohertz, far below that used for medical diagnostics). And the tests have attracted as much attention as possible.
The results
Cells that usually stopped after 15 replications continued to "work" undisturbed, even reaching 24 replications (over 50% increase). And mice subjected to an increased frequency of ultrasound show improvements in memory. "That's very promising data," he says Jürgen Götz from the University of Queensland in Australia, who was part of the research team. "More work is now needed to define the actual ultrasound parameters."
Next step: an experiment involving patients with osteoarthritis and foot ulcers. To refine the technique with low-frequency ultrasound and rule out a theoretical risk: All therapies that increase cell division could increase the rate of cancer, but Sheetz says his team saw no signs of this.
All that remains is to listen: in the meantime, if you want more information, I'll link the complete search here.
