Two common drugs may combat premature ageing in kids

London, July 10 : A new study has found that two common drugs - statins, used to reduce cholesterol, and bisphosphonates, used to curb osteoporosis - can offer a treatment option for premature ageing in kids.

Progeria is a rare genetic disease that causes premature ageing and is usually fatal before puberty.

Premature ageing is caused by gene mutations that affects the production of a protein called prelamin A, critical for the disease.

The protein then ties to molecular fragments in the body called farnesyls, which in turn bind to the nuclear membrane, leading to protein accumulation, reports New Scinetist.

In the study conducted over mice with progeria, lead researcher Carlos Lopez-Otin of the University of Oviedo, Spain found that combination of two drugs reduced ageing symptoms and increased survival rates.

The researchers are now seeking permission to conduct human trails to understand whether statins and bisphosphonates would help them.

The study appears in Nature Medicine.

ANI