The Peter Pan Gene

Looking young for your age? Thank the Peter Pan gene

By Fiona Macrae

Last updated at 2:01 AM on 08th February 2010

Scientists have found a 'Peter Pan gene' that could explain why some people remain baby-faced while others become old before their time.

Millions of Britons are blessed with DNA that makes them look up to eight years younger than their peers.

The research - the first to definitively link genetic changes to ageing - could be why Cliff Richard and Paul McCartney look significantly younger than Mick Jagger, despite both being his senior.

 

Genetics could explain why Paul McCartney looks significantly younger than Mick Jagger, despite being one year older than him

It could also pave the way for drugs that hold back the hands of time and keep hearts and brains healthy into old age.

The British-led research team made the discovery after trawling the DNA of more than 12,000 people for patterns that affected the rate their bodies aged.

This identified one stretch of DNA that clearly sped up ageing, the journal Nature Genetics reports.

Up to 7 per cent of the population has two copies of it, meaning they look up to eight years older than people of the same age. Another 38 per cent has one copy, ageing them by three to four years.

A fortunate, and fresh-faced, 55 per cent do not have it at all. Instead, they have two copies of the 'Peter Pan' gene, meaning they remain youthful-looking for longer.

The key to the study was the length of telomeres - tiny biological clocks that cap the ends of chromosomes. They get shorter and shorter with time, until eventually the cells die.

The researchers, from the University of Leicester and King's College London, found that people with the 'Peter Pan' version had longer telomeres, meaning their biological clocks ticked more slowly.

 Home Sweet Home

It may be just a humble house, The place that we call home… But there’s no other like it No matter where we roam; Familiar things within its walls We get to know so well, And when we’re tired and weary It’s where we can rest a spell. We get to know its every noise, The sounds that are its own; The floor that creaks, or window groan When by the wind it’s blown. The noises are a part of home, Just like the friendly door That lets us in to see the things We cherish and adore. Home is where the heart is, Where those we love abide; And through our joys or sorrows They are always by our side. The outside world may weary us Even though we do our best, But love is always waiting When we turn toward home for rest. Home is were we like to be When things outside go wrong. When we are tired and weary From mingling with the throng. Home is our sanctuary As through this life we roam, And there’s no other like it… The house that we call home. By: Jendi

Amazing Photographs

 Father forced to deliver own baby

Father forced to deliver own baby in maternity ward after midwife goes missing during labour

Daily Mail Reporter
Last updated at 11:36 AM on 03rd February 2010

A father was forced to deliver his own baby in a maternity ward after the midwife abandoned them.

Thomas Howard, 33, frantically pressed the emergency buzzer to alert staff at the Royal Blackburn Hospital, Lancashire, for help when he realised the newborn's arrival was imminent.

But when no one at the maternity suite arrived to deliver the baby, he had to act.

Father-of-five Mr Howard said by the time the midwife had returned, his partner Emily Baron had already given birth.

Enlarge  

Thomas Howard with his partner Emily Baron and their daughter Madeline. She was delivered by Thomas after the midwife was absent

Kiss from mum and dad: Madeline gets a peck from Thomas and Emily

Emily, 26, had been taken to hospital after going into labour. After arranging for family members to look after their other children, Thomas arrived half an hour later and noticed Emily was losing blood.

'When I asked the midwife if this was normal she said she didn't know, which didn't fill me with confidence at all,' said Mr Howard.

 'I pressed the buzzer to get some assistance, but nobody came and I decided that I would have to step in.

'I have never done anything like it before, but I've seen others do it a few times, so I had a rough idea'

'She then went away, leaving me and Emily on our own. It was then I noticed the baby's head coming through. I pressed the buzzer to get some assistance, but nobody came and I decided that I would have to step in.

'I have never done anything like it before, but I've seen others do it a few times, so I had a rough idea.

'The baby was lying at the end of the bed between Emily's legs and I was cleaning the mucous out of her mouth and making sure she could breathe when the midwife came back in.

'I was in shock at what had happened but the nurse didn't say anything to me. She just carried on as if it was normal.'

Madeline Louise Howard was born at 8.15am last Tuesday weighing 4lb 15oz.

The couple are angry at the poor care they received and were worried because of problems at previous births. Thomas and Emily have four other children - Reece, nine, Dylan, six, Adam, two, and one-year-old Deni.

The National Childbirth Trust (NCT) have also criticised the hospital's treatment as an example of the midwife shortage facing the UK.

An NCT spokesperson said: 'Being left alone in labour in hospital is unacceptable.  

'As a civilised society we must ensure this basic need of women is met. Having a midwife with you when you give birth is vital to ensure there are no complications.' 

Madeline briefly opens her eyes. The National Childbirth Trust have criticised the hospital's treatment as an example of the midwife shortage facing the UK

The Royal Blackburn Hospital where Madeline was born. The NHS Trust responsible has apologised to the couple over the care they received.

Mr Howard, of Blackburn, added: 'I know that these nurses are busy and work very hard, but I feel the department is understaffed.

Science Images Of The Week

	The European Space Observatory has released a magnificent Very Large Telescope image of the giant stellar nursery surrounding NGC 3603, in which stars are continuously being born. It is in our Milky Way galaxy.

	Is this what a Google tablet could look like? The concept drawing popped up on the company's Chromium site this week. The photo was developed by Glen Murphy, who is working on Chrome's OS and browser.

	A pioneering interactive system invented by Spanish scientists from Universidad Miguel Hernandez that operates a computer and the internet through brain signals. The system consists of more than a hundred electrodes stuck to a cap that capture brain activity and transform it into simple orders.

	Humanoid communication robot 'Palro' demonstrates its abilities at Fuji Ltd's offices in Japan. The robot weighs 3.5lbs and stands 15.6

	A humpback whale breaching in waters off Hook Head, Ireland. The image has been sent to the College of the Atlantic, Maine, in the United States, for matching with the North Atlantic Humpback database.

	A chimpanzee carries a video camera in a protective case at Edinburgh Zoo. For the last eleven months the chimpanzees have been taking part in a study called 'The Chimpcam Project' where they have shot their own footage.

	An image captured by an instrument on Nasa's Terra spacecraft on January 21, shows Port-au-Prince, Haiti, nine days after a magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck the region.

	An artistic impression of the Sinosauropteryx, sporting its orange and white striped tail. Scientists said they had identified true colours of this dinosaur for the first time.

Events In Pictures

	An installation of laser lights is seen in the town of Vancouver, Canada

	A US army helicopter flies over the stepped Ziggurat temple, a three-tiered edifice dating back to 2113 BC, in the ancient city of Ur in southern Iraq

	Indian onlookers gather as police and fire personnel try to find labourers trapped under a collapsed four-storey, under construction building in Hyderabad

	A stingless jellyfish swims just under the surface of a remote lake in Surigao, Philippines

	Recruits of paramilitary police put on badges for each other during a military rank conferral ceremony at a military base in Suining, China

	A man carries to girl through a flooded street in the Arenal neiborghood of Mexico City after heavy rains

	Visitors reach out for beans thrown by sumo wrestlers, actors and actresses during a ceremony at Shinshoji Temple in Narita, Japan

Canadian tourist Bernice Griffiths is reflected in the 24-carat gold tinted windows of the 88th floor of the Eureka Tower, the world's tallest solely residential building, overlooking Melbourne.

Beach goers take a look at the 30 fully stocked IKEA "Billy" bookcases lined up to form the world's longest outdoor bookcase at a beach in Sydney. The event celebrates the 30th birthday of IKEA's signature piece of furniture.

A large crowd gathers on the beach to see the premiere of the final season of Lost

Carl and Holly Baldwin, who recently won the lottery, kiss in a plastic ball pit during a promotion put on by the Powerball and Mega Millions lotteries at New York City's Grand Central Station.



A lone "nail house," whose owner is seeking more compensation before agreeing to demolition, stands in a future construction site in Hefei, China.

 

on Waikiki beach in Honolulu.

Valued Exposure

A busy pizza parlour in an Italian area of central Boston, Massachusetts, circa 1955.

Photo by Three Lions/Getty Images

 F and J Keys On Your Keyboard

A standard keyboard looks something like this:




Now feel the F and J keys on your keyboard. Compare them with other keys.

Do you notice or feel that they are different from the other keys?

On all laptop keyboards(QWERTY) there are some ridges on the F and J buttons, what are they for?

Answer:

The bumps or ridges found on the F and J keys on the keyboard helps users correctly position their left and right hand on the keyboard without having to look at it. For example, without looking at the keyboard you can easily position your left index finger on the F and the right index finger on the J, which then positions all the remainder of your fingers in the correct position. People who touch-type (type without looking) use these two ridges to determine the position of their fingers on the keyboard.

Events In Pictures

	A young monk plays with pigeons near the royal palace in Bangkok, Thailand

	A US Marine wears combat camouflage as he takes part in a training exercise in Thailand

	A-37B Dragonfly jets from the South Korean acrobatic team 'Black Eagles' perform in Osan, near Seoul

	Samuel Martin, director of La Ferme aux Crocodiles in Pierrelatte, France, holds up a rare albino alligator

New US ambassador to Brazil, Tom Shannon, (right) receives military honors after meeting with President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in Brasilia, Brazil.

A photographer takes a picture of the North Grounds of the White House in Washington D.C. after fresh snowfall.



An Indian woman prepares food for dinner at a makeshift home in New Delhi, India.

Tai Shan ("Peaceful Mountain" in Chinese) stole the hearts of Americans in the 4½ years after his birth on July 9, 2005, at the National Zoo. He was on loan from the Chinese government and will return to China to participate in a breeding program.

 

The Whale Whisperer

The Whale Whisperer: Astonishing bond between diver and Scar the giant sperm whale

Peering solemnly nose-to-nose at each other, this is the Whale Whisperer and his friend - Scar the 10-year-old giant of the sea.

These spectacular images show Andrew Armour bonding with the colossal sperm whale in the warm Caribbean waters off the island of Dominica.

Taken on the weekend, the photographs offer stunning insight into the lives of other pod members travelling with Scar.

Friends: Andrew Armour and Scar the sperm whale consider one another solemnly as they swim in the waters off Dominica last weekend

That feels nice: Scar's eyes are closed as Andrew swims alongside him petting him

Whale watch operator Andrew, from Dominica, said: 'Our bond began in 2000 when my wife Rhona found him injured out at sea when he was just a calf. We think he might have been attacked by pilot whales but we are not sure.

'His head and dorsal fin were injured and he came to our boat, perhaps seeking some comfort. The most we could do was pet him and his injuries left him with some scarring.

'From then on he and another young female would approach us whenever they saw our boat. We could even call him over.

'Now he recognises me when I am swimming. I feel like he even knows my voice. I can get very close with him because we trust each other. I even clean lice off him and he lets me do it.

More than a decade later, Andrew is now able to invite other snorkellers and divers along to share in the incredible experience.

Last week he took underwater photographers Eric Cheng, 34, from San Francisco, California, and Tony Wu, 42, from Tokyo, Japan, to witness his amazing encounters with Scar and other sperm whales in his pod.

It meant observers Eric and Tony were given a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to interact with the huge animal themselves.

Social functions: Other sperm whales in the pod with patches of dead skin flaking off them. Sperm whales often exfoliate by rubbing against one another

'When Tony and I first encountered Scar we had to continuously move out of the way to prevent the large whale from rubbing up against us,' said Eric.

'Soon enough, we overcame the worry that is natural when confronting one of the world's largest carnivores in its native environment.

'We stroked and scratched Scar, who twitched and rolled over repeatedly in what appeared to be enjoyment.  

'It's dangerous to anthropomorphise animals - even intelligent ones - but it was absolutely clear in this case that Scar wanted the interaction.'

Anthropomorphism is the human habit of likening animal behaviour to human behaviour.

Eric continued: 'Scar can be now be approached by humans, but it is important to remember his still a wild animal and needs to be treated with respect.'

Just hanging out: Four of the whales suspend themselves upside down in the water