My overall experience at Fred Hutch Explorers has been that it is an amazing opportunity that benefited me to explore my interests in science. This internship has inspired my future career in science, which I thought was limited. Not based on my potential, rather it being based on fear and discouragement of seeing not very many people who looked like me in those fields. Fears of not being accepted solely because of my race or my religion. And feeling discouraged at times because of that. Thankfully slowly but surely, I learned that it’s all a part of the process to fully unlock my true pathway in science. To face difficulties is all a part of the process; experiencing and learning that there are endless possibilities and routes I can be a part of, that I can be a part of the change for the future, and this internship at Fred Hutch was one of my first steps in my journey.
Over this past week of multiple interesting topics and lecturers, [the alumni journal club] ... session stood out to me. [The article we discussed showed me that] the development of how our body and age works is extraordinary! In a small study, scientists have been studying a possible way to extend the length of telomeres. Commonly, at an older age we most likely pass away due to severe medical conditions. Diet, health, and wellbeing are all factors to why we age. The healthier the lifestyle the longer we live right?
Factually, there was always a narrative that age cannot be reversed, it’s part of the cycle of life and that was the end of discussion. But the possibility of even partially reversing cellular aging is mind-blowing to say the least. It has been documented in the past that scientists have attempted such trials without very much success. But recently, scientists in Israel conducted a study involving 26 patients. Their trials revolved around the stages of patients sitting in a hyperbaric oxygen chamber, for five 90 minutes sessions weekly over the period of three months. They allegedly stated that the results revealed some of the participants' cells, telomeres were extended by up to 20 percent! Woah! Any amount of success is success! They stated that the participants stopped shedding old cells, theoretically making people 25 years younger! They were slowing down aging and reversing it.
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