Source:  Cell Stem Cell Journal – June 2015 [Cover Pictured]

There are currently 53 supercentenarians – people aged 110 years and over, alive in the world today; and 95% of them are female.

Ben Dulken and Anne Brunet from Stanford University (California, USA), and colleagues recently explored the underlying reasons as to why this female percentage is so high.

In June 2015, Dulken and Brunet released their findings so far and argue that it’s now time to look at the differences in regenerative decline between men and women more closely.

Armed with current knowledge about stem cell behavior and sex hormones, the researchers report there are key differences in regenerative decline between men and women: particularly involving the sex hormones estrogen and testosterone in modifying lifespan.  Previous studies report that estrogen has direct effects on stem cell populations in female mice, from increasing the number of blood stem cells to enhancing the regenerative capacity of brain stem cells.  More recent studies suggest that estrogen supplementation may increase the lifespan of male mice.

Scientists observed that:  “Longevity differs between sexes, with females being longer-lived in most mammals, including humans.”  They state: “One significant hallmark of aging is the functional decline of stem cells.”

The authors conclude: “a key question is whether the aging of stem cells differs between males and females and whether this has consequences for disease and lifespan.”

More work is now needed to understand genetic impacts and stem cell aging between the sexes.

Source:  http://www.cell.com/cell-stem-cell/home