Could blood transfers reverse ageing?

  • 10/08/2015
Could blood transfers reverse ageing?

Can the old and frail be rejuvenated by infusions of blood from the young?

A new study says quite possibly, and it's like something out a vampire film.

Auckland University nanotech scientist Michelle Dickinson told Paul Henry this morning that there's no "sucking of blood" involved in the process, nor is it "whole blood".

"It's just plasma, which is where you spin the blood and you take the platelets out," says Dr Dickinson. "They tested on mice first – they opened them up, transferred their circulatory systems so that they were virtually like Siamese twins."

She goes on to explain that what eventually happened was that the "older mice seemed younger, they had better memories and could run for longer on a treadmill… while the young mice who were getting the old blood were getting older."

Watch the video for the full interview.