Articles - Neurobiology of Disease: A Dietary Regimen of Caloric Restriction or Pharmacological Activation of SIRT1 to Delay the Onset of Neurodegeneration
  • Johannes Gräff,
  • Martin Kahn,
  • Alireza Samiei,
  • Jun Gao,
  • Kristie T. Ota,
  • Damien Rei,
  • and Li-Huei Tsai
The Journal of Neuroscience, 22 May 2013, 33(21):8951-8960; doi:10.1523/JNEUROSCI.5657-12.2013

  1. Caloric Restriction Benefits Related to ADRCs?

    I'm neither a biologist or a scientist. However, I am very familiar with much of the work done on SIRT1 through an investment I had in Sirtris Pharmacueticals and the theory that the calorie restriction diet (CRD) can activate SIRT1 and prolong life. Here is an article I wrote about the company back in 2007: http://wallstreettitan.blogspot.com/2007/12/genesis- of-age-of-life-extention.html

    More recently my interest has been piqued by the potential of adipose derived regenerative cells (ADRCs). Again, my interest is related to investing but I also am certainly enthralled by the science. As I said I'm not an expert in any of this. However, an interesting thought occurred to me. Might there be a connection between the CRD and ADRCs? I'll explain my thinking and ask the experts to comment.

    We now know that fat is the richest repository of stem cells in the body and that ADRCs represent a mixture of many types of regenerative cells that have shown strong evidence of therapeutic value. So what happens to all these beneficial cells when an animal is put on the CRD? Can it be that CRD causes ADRCs to be released into the bloodstream to circulate and target the first sign of trouble? Could this be a defense mechanism that releases ADRCs from fat as fat cells shrink to almost nothing or disappear? If so, do these cells roam around in the bloodstream and rejuvenate mature aging cells throughout the body? Could this be an additional mechanism that helps explain the benefits seen from the calorie restriction diet?

    The way I look at it, the questions that the experts need to answer are:

    1) Do all the ADRCs hidden in fat exist from conception or are they produced over a life time?

    2)What happens when the home of the ADRCs starts to disappear. Do the ADRCs disappear too or are they released into the body, honing in on places where they can help?

    Again, I have no peer reviewed research or technical knowledge to back this train of thought but I was intrigued enough by the idea to put it out there for those who have the resources and expertise to examine it.

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    Published May 28, 2013
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