http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/s ... 120516.ece

May 9, 2010 The Times

Girl frozen in time may hold key to ageing
American scientists are keenly studying the DNA of a 17-year-old girl who still has the body and behaviour of a baby

Jonathan Leake

Scientists are hoping to gain new insights into the mysteries of ageing by sequencing the genome of a 17-year-old girl who has the body and behaviour of a tiny toddler.

Brooke Greenberg is old enough to drive a car and next year will be old enough to vote — but at 16lb in weight and just 30in tall, she is still the size of a one-year-old.

Until recently she had been regarded as a medical oddity but a preliminary study of her DNA has suggested her failure to grow could be linked to defects in the genes that make the rest of humanity grow old.

If confirmed, the research could give scientists a fresh understanding of ageing and even suggest new therapies for diseases linked to old age.

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