could scientists program our DNA to allow our cells to regenerate indefinitely so as to achieve immortality?

Answer 1

in time they probably will figure out how to do that. what a day that will be. i think it's a long way off though. before we become immortal, we need to start colonizing other planets, so we have places for all the immortal people to spread out to. Earth is already overpopulated.

Answer 2

sure, scientists do it all of the time, and, if cells become cancerous that is what they do. as this is not organized, it doesn't contribute to some kind of immortality. there are many mechanisms to prevent and hold back regions of DNA which encode cell cycle- related genes. when these break down, you get cancer, improper development, etc. you might look up "apoptosis" if you're interested. also, stem cells regenerate indefinitely, particularly embryonic (non-differentiated) ones. thats why they're so valuable. some people have modified the "telomerase" gene to try and cause cells to regenerate (divide) indefinitely.

Answer 3

Scientists already can show the degrees of relationships between organisms based on DNA. I'm really surprised that there isn't more fundamentalist opposition to genetics. After all, the Genesis stories are just (according to them) about how God made an ancestor a long time ago. But genetics is about how each one of us is produced through natural processes determined by a chemical code we inherit from our parents. That isn't exactly our being literally knit together in the womb, as the Bible puts it. Sooner or later Christians have to realize that either you can make peace with all of science and continue to preserve your faith, or you have to oppose all of it. Evolution is not the only area of science that conflicts with a literal reading of the Bible. Rocket science is the most problematic - they keep sending them up and they never hit the dome mentioned in Genesis 1. (Yes, it does literally say 'dome'. The Hebrew word comes from a verb meaning to spread out by hammering. The noun clearly envisaged a solid object).

Answer 4

This would only be feasible (ie not require massive cell therapy) if applied to fetuses in utero. Essentially, we would need to get rid of telomere shortening. Telomeres shorten every time a cell undergoes division. When telomeres reach a length that is unacceptable for division, a body ages and dies. This length limit (Hayflick limit) can possibly be circumvented.

Indeed, a strain of cells called HeLa has been subject to intense investigation over the past 50 years. These cells are "immortal" in the sense that the telomeres appear not to shorten.

Answer 5

It could be possible in the near future by either programming the DNA cells or by incorporating artificial and replaceable mechanisms into the original natural body; for instance a cyborg or a superhuman machine.

Answer 6

There are already human cells that can reproduce indefinitely, like that of a turtle. these cells are called HeLa Cells, since they can reproduce outside of a human host, they are now classified as a separate species. so I don't think that this is such a far-fetched idea, the only question is if our minds could handle the indefinite life span.

Answer 7

That's what a cancer cell does! But why do we need immortallity? People lives and dies. Anyway I think scientist will have great interest in searching the secret of live..

Answer 8

They have!
http://www.imminst.org/forum/index.php?s=&act=ST&f=48&t=884&st=0&#entry113973

Answer 9

Well, this seems to be possible in the not-too-far future, but for the time being, there is no safe way to do so.

Answer 10

they're working on something like that. Say our grand kids could live to be 125. They won't be able to retire until they're 90 or so. Glad I won't be around to endure that!