New Horizons in Science

Much of what we know about aging was found first in yeast—and then later throughout the animal kingdom. Now a new discovery in yeast is challenging recent findings on lifespan and calorie restriction. Franz Rosenzweig has found that if he immobilizes yeast cells in a matrix and feeds them all the food and vitamins they want, they will rev up to produce large quantities of ethanol, but they won’t divide—and they don’t seem to age. He and his colleagues are now racing to find which genes are responsible for this amazing and unexpected longevity—and whether those genes might hold any clues to increasing the lifespans of aging science writers (among others).