Department of Biological Sciences, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242, USA.
Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA 52242, USA.
Hospital for Special Surgery, Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Weill Medical College of Cornell University, New York, NY 10021, USA.
Center for Molecular Biology and Biotechnology, Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton, FL 33431, USA.
Research Unit Molecular and Cellular Biophysics, Medical Faculty of the Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Drackendorfer Strasse 1, D-07747 Jena, Germany.
Division of Neurosciences, Beckman Research Institute of the City of Hope, 1450 East Duarte Road, Duarte, CA 91010, USA.
Cumulative oxidative damages to cell constituents are considered to contribute to aging and age-related diseases. The enzyme peptide methionine sulfoxide reductase A (MSRA) catalyzes the repair of oxidized methionine in proteins by reducing methionine sulfoxide back to methionine. However, whether MSRA plays a role in the aging process is poorly understood. Here we report that overexpression of the msrA gene predominantly in the nervous system markedly extends the lifespan of the fruit fly Drosophila. The MSRA transgenic animals are more resistant to paraquat-induced oxidative stress, and the onset of senescence-induced decline in the general activity level and reproductive capacity is delayed markedly. The results suggest that oxidative damage is an important determinant of lifespan, and MSRA may be important in increasing the lifespan in other organisms including humans.