Klotho, Spinning the Thread of Life: an Anti-Ageing Gene

Authors

  • Antonis S Manolis Evagelismos General Hospital, Athens

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.2015/hc.v7i3.523

Keywords:

klotho gene, anti-ageing gene, longevity, premature ageing, renal disease, cardiovascular disease

Abstract

Klotho, named after the ancient Greek goddess Klotho, the spinner (of life), is an aging suppressor or longevity-related gene, discovered in 1997. A defect in the Klotho gene expression in mice leads to phenotypes resembling human premature or accelerated aging syndromes, with a short lifespan, infertility, arteriosclerosis, skin atrophy, osteoporosis and emphysema, while Klotho overexpression is associated with extended longevity. The Klotho gene encodes a transmembrane protein expressed mainly in the kidney, the parathyroid gland and the choroid plexus. The Klotho protein has multiple regulating functions, can serve as a useful biomarker and may have potential therapeutic applications, and thus an emerging role in reno-cardio-vascular disease, which is briefly explored in this overview.

Author Biography

Antonis S Manolis, Evagelismos General Hospital, Athens

Specialty: Cardiology

Downloads

Published

2012-06-30

Issue

Vol. 7 No. 3 (2012)

Section

EDITORIAL

License

Authors who publish with this journal agree to the following terms:

a. Authors retain copyright and grant the journal right of first publication with the work simultaneously licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the work's authorship and initial publication in this journal.

b. Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.

c. Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) prior to and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges, as well as earlier and greater citation of published work (See The Effect of Open Access).