At the Longevity Summit Dublin 2024, Miguel Brieño-Enriquez delivered an insightful keynote on the lifelong fertility of naked mole-rats and its implications for human reproductive health. He explored the unique biological traits of these animals, including their sustained germ cell numbers and stem cell activity, which allow them to reproduce throughout their lifespan. The research holds potential for developing treatments to extend fertility and combat reproductive ageing in humans​.

Key Points:

• Naked Mole-Rats and Lifelong Fertility: Miguel Brieño-Enriquez discussed the unique biology of naked mole-rats, which maintain fertility throughout their lives, a rare trait among mammals. These animals can reproduce even at advanced ages without a decline in fertility, providing a model for studying reproductive longevity.
• Ovarian Biology of Naked Mole-Rats: Naked mole-rats exhibit high germ cell numbers, far exceeding those of mice, even in later life stages. Unlike other species, these germ cells do not diminish significantly with age, contributing to their sustained fertility.
• Pluripotency in Ovarian Cells: The study revealed that ovarian cells in naked mole-rats retain markers of pluripotency, meaning they have the ability to develop into various cell types. This could be one of the mechanisms supporting their ongoing fertility.
• Stem Cell Activity: Brieño-Enriquez highlighted that stem cells in naked mole-rats continue dividing and contributing to the ovarian reserve well into adulthood, which is unusual for mammals and suggests a model for overcoming ovarian ageing.
• Reproductive Senescence Resistance: The naked mole-rat model offers insights into resistance to reproductive ageing, showing that their ovaries do not undergo the same rapid deterioration as in other mammals, such as humans, which leads to menopause.
• Potential Applications for Human Health: Brieño-Enriquez proposed that understanding the mechanisms behind the naked mole-rats' resistance to reproductive ageing could lead to therapies that delay or even reverse ovarian ageing in humans.