There are no immortal organisms on Earth, but there are a surprisingly large number of species that live very long. Some of them have an anatomy very close to ours, leading researchers to believe that the life expectancy of healthy people could be significantly extended beyond the current limit, Sky News reports.

The Galapagos giant tortoise and some species of reptiles and fishes, for example, show something called “insignificant senescence”—organisms that show no signs of biological aging, such as reduced reproductive capacity, functional decline, or increased mortality with progression. age.

Tissue samples from a young Galapagos tortoise and a 150-year-old tortoise are very similar. Their ability to move, feed and reproduce does not decrease significantly with age. A boreal shark would live 300 years or even more. So why can’t people do the same?

There are several theories, but essentially the explanation has to do with the fact that in the evolution of our species, the ability to live longer than necessary to reproduce and raise our children has never been an advantage.

Read in full at Digi24.ro