The Girl Who Never Ages

A young girl is under the scrutiny of scientists who say she may be one of the most important finds in the often sought fountain of youth.  The girl has been alive for seventeen years, but still looks and behaves like a one-year-old child.  She weighs 16 lbs and is only 30 inches in height.  Most people who see her say Brooke Greenberg is only a toddler.  But Brooke Greenberg is almost old enough to vote.  Scientists say the child is suffering from a rare genetic mutation.  And if scientists map her genome as they are hoping to do, they may find out why.

Brooke, age 17

When many scientists look at Brooke Greenburg, they see an opportunity to discover why we age.  When her mother sees her, she sees the girl who will never grow up - literally.  Researchers at the University of South Florida School of Medicine, led by Richard Walker, have suggested that the girl's rare condition is an opportunity for the team to study something that they have been attempting to uncover for years: why we age.  There are several theories, but the actual mechanics behind the aging process are often unclear or misleading.  "If we can compare her genome," Walker says, "to the normal version then we might be able to find those genes and see exactly what the do and how to control them."

Age is a matter that all humans have to come to terms with at some point in their lives.  We are born, we reach a peak age, and then we begin gradually to deteriorate before we die.  But what about a world where we didn't age?  That's the question several scientists are proposing.  If genes could be studied accurately, then not only could the aging process potentially be halted, there are some who suggest it could even be (in some ways) reversed.  Of course this field of research is still new, and there are a thousand different avenues of research that could help the whole world.

Meanwhile, life for Melanie and Howard Greenberg goes on in the suburb where they live.  It's a struggle as they continue to help Brooke through her life as an eternal toddler, changing her, rocking her to sleep, and attempting to teach her to speak.  Brooke crawls, smiles, and giggles when tickled, but has not yet mastered the art of speech.  In addition, she has suffered several potentially deadly illnesses and conditions.  But the girl who may hold the future in her genes is not without hope.  As research into her condition continues she may not only help others, but herself as well.  Scientists have already discovered that parts of her body are aging, just at different speeds.  Those researching her case have suggested that it's likely that her genes have been damaged in such a way that it makes it difficult for her body to coordinate the rate at which her body develops.  Scientists suggest if they could only figure out which gene, they could switch it on and off at will.  And maybe switching it on in Brooke would help her develop into an adult.  Would it be possible to then stop aging for the rest of us?