A tiny worm revealed how easy sensory indicators can quietly change longevity on or off.
The thought of extending life could also be particularly common amongst trendy tech circles, however the need to remain younger or dwell perpetually has fascinated humanity for 1000’s of years.
Most of the most dependable methods scientists know for growing lifespan, together with long-term dietary restriction, are tough and infrequently uncomfortable to maintain.
Scientists Discover a Longevity Gene
New analysis from the laboratory of Scott Leiser, Ph.D., within the Molecular and Integrative Physiology Division on the College of Michigan Medical Faculty, reveals how a single longevity-related gene connects habits, environmental indicators, and biology.
These discoveries assist researchers higher perceive the inner processes that regulate lifespan and level towards methods to increase life with out counting on excessive life-style adjustments.
What Worms Can Educate Us About Growing old
One examine, revealed in PNAS, examined how environmental cues and meals availability affect longevity utilizing a tiny worm (the favored analysis mannequin species, C. elegans).
“Believe it or not, most of the central ideas and types of metabolism we study are conserved from worms to people,” said Leiser.
He explained that sensing the environment triggers hormone release in humans, including adrenaline or dopamine. Worms respond in a similar way, with neurons that detect environmental changes and adjust their physiology accordingly.
Earlier studies have shown that stressful conditions such as limited access to food can improve survival.
Related work in fruit flies by Scott Pletcher, Ph.D., a colleague of Leiser at U-M, found that simply smelling food was enough to cancel out those survival benefits.
How Touch Disrupts Longevity Signals
Leiser and project leader Elizabeth Kitto, Ph.D., with support from Safa Beydoun, Ph.D., wanted to know whether other sensory experiences, such as touch, could also interfere with the lifespan extension caused by dietary restriction, and how that might happen.
To investigate, the researchers placed worms on a surface covered with beads designed to feel like the E. coli they normally encounter while feeding.
This tactile stimulation alone reduced the activity of a longevity associated gene in the intestine (fmo-2) and weakened the lifespan benefits normally produced by restricted diets.
Leiser first identified fmo-2 in 2015 as a gene that is both required and sufficient for lifespan extension triggered by dietary restriction.
“The fmo-2 enzyme remodels metabolism, and as a result increases lifespan,” he explained. “Without the enzyme, dietary restriction does not lead to a longer lifespan.”
Further experiments showed that touch activates a signaling circuit involving cells that release dopamine and tyramine. This reduces fmo-2 activity in the intestine and limits the longevity effect of dietary restriction.
Potential Implications for Human Health
According to Leiser, one of the most important takeaways is that these sensory circuits are not fixed and may be adjustable.
“If we could induce fmo-2 without taking away food, we could activate the stress response and trick your brain into making you long-lived.”
Before that becomes possible, researchers need to understand the other roles fmo-2 plays in the body.
Behavioral Side Effects of Longevity Pathways
In a second study published in Science Advances, the research team showed that altering fmo-2 also changes behavior in clear ways.
Worms engineered to produce too much fmo-2 showed little reaction to both positive and negative environmental changes. They failed to avoid potentially harmful bacteria and did not slow their eating after a brief fast, unlike normal worms.
Worms that lacked fmo-2 entirely were also affected, exploring their surroundings less often than usual. In both cases, the behavioral changes were traced to shifts in tryptophan metabolism.
“There are going to be side effects to any intervention to extend life–and we think one of the side effects will be behavioral,” said Leiser.
“By understanding this pathway, we could potentially provide supplements to offset some of these negative behavioral effects.”
Looking Ahead in Longevity Research
Leiser plans to continue studying how the brain, metabolism, behavior, and overall health interact, with the goal of helping develop future drugs that target these natural biological pathways.
“Investigating all of the individual signals that our brain is responding to from the gut is a hot but not well understood area.”
References:
“Metabolic regulation of behavior by the intestinal enzyme FMO-2” by Elizabeth S. Kitto, Safa Beydoun, Ella Henry, Megan L. Schaller, Mira Bhandari, Sarah A. Easow, Angela M. Tuckowski, Marshall B. Howington, Ajay Bhat, Aditya Sridhar, Eugene Chung, Charles R. Evans and Scott F. Leiser, 24 October 2025, Science Advances.
DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adx3018
“Rewarding touch limits lifespan through neural to intestinal signaling” by Elizabeth S. Kitto, Safa Beydoun and Scott F. Leiser, 23 October 2025, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2423780122
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