The Search For The Anti-Aging Pill Reading Answers

Collegedunia Team

Mar 22, 2022

The IELTS reading section assesses students based on their ability to read a passage and answer subsequent questions. These are the KPIs that are used to evaluate a candidate's reading abilities in IELTS examination. The details are required to be remembered in IELTS reading from the passage that is presented to them. IELTS academic reading is a crucial section and students are required to look after their preparation accordingly. The Search For The Anti-Aging Pill IELTS reading answers is a topic which can be utilized by students to prepare themselves for IELTS reading assessment. Candidates face similar topics in IELTS reading practice papers.The topic includes question as mentioned below:

  1. Yes, no, and not given.
  2. Classify the descriptions
  3. Complete the flowchart

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Section 1

Read the Passage to Answer the Following Questions

The Search For The Anti-Aging Pill Reading Answers

A

As researchers on aging noted recently, no treatment on the market today has been proved to slow human aging - the build-up of molecular and cellular damage that increases vulnerability to infirmity as we grow older. But one intervention, consumption of a low-calorie* yet nutritionally balanced diet works incredibly well in a broad range of animals, increasing longevity and prolonging good health. Those findings suggest that caloric restriction could delay aging and increase longevity in humans, too.

B

Unfortunately, for maximum benefit, people would probably have to reduce their caloric intake by roughly thirty per cent, equivalent to dropping from 2,500 calories a day to 1,750. Few mortals could stick to that harsh regimen, especially for years on end. But what if someone could create a pill that mimicked the physiological effects of eating less without actually forcing people to eat less? Could such a ‘caloric-restriction mimetic’, as we call it, enable people to stay healthy longer, postponing age-related disorders (such as diabetes, arteriosclerosis, heart disease and cancer) until very late in life? Scientists first posed this question in the mid-1990s, after researchers came upon a chemical agent that in rodents seemed to reproduce many of caloric restriction’s benefits. No compound that would safely achieve the same feat in people has been found yet, but the search has been informative and has

fanned hope that caloric-restriction (CR) mimetics can indeed be developed eventually.

C

The benefits of caloric restriction

The hunt for CR mimetics grew out of a desire to better understand caloric restriction’s many effects on the body. Scientists first recognized the value of the practice more than 60 years ago, when they found that rats fed a low-calorie diet lived longer on average than free-feeding rats and also had a reduced incidence of conditions that become increasingly common in old age. What is more, some of the treated animals survived longer than the oldest-living animals in the control group, which means that the maximum lifespan (the oldest attainable age), not merely the normal lifespan, increased. Various interventions, such as infection-fighting drugs, can increase a population’s average survival time, but only approaches that slow the body’s rate of aging will increase the maximum lifespan.

D

The rat findings have been replicated many times and extended to creatures ranging from yeast to fruit flies, worms, fish, spiders, mice and hamsters. Until fairly recently, the studies were limited to short-lived creatures genetically distant from humans. But caloric-restriction projects underway in two species more closely related to humans - rhesus and squirrel monkeys - have made scientists optimistic that CR mimetics could help people.

E

The monkey projects demonstrate that, compared with control animals that eat normally, caloric-restriction monkeys have lower body temperatures and levels of the pancreatic hormone insulin, and they retain more youthful levels of certain hormones that tend to fall with age.

F

The caloric-restricted animals also look better on indicators of risk for age-related diseases. For example, they have lower blood pressure and triglyceride levels (signifying a decreased likelihood of heart disease), and they have more normal blood glucose levels (pointing to a reduced risk for diabetes, which is marked by unusually high blood glucose levels). Further, it has recently been shown that rhesus monkeys kept on caloric-restricted diets for an extended time (nearly 15 years) have less chronic disease. They and the other monkeys must be followed still longer, however, to know whether low-calorie intake can increase both average and maximum lifespans in monkeys. Unlike the multitude of elixirs being touted as the latest anti-aging cure, CR mimetics would alter fundamental processes that underlie aging. We aim to develop compounds that fool cells into activating maintenance and repair.

G

How a prototype caloric-restriction mimetic works

The best-studied candidate for a caloric-restriction mimetic, 2DG (2-deoxy-D-glucose), works by interfering with the way cells process glucose. It has proved toxic at some doses in animals and so cannot be used in humans. But it has demonstrated that chemicals can replicate the effects of caloric restriction; the trick is finding the right one.

H

Cells use the glucose from food to generate ATP (adenosine triphosphate), the molecule that powers many activities in the body. By limiting food intake, caloric restriction minimizes the amount of glucose entering cells and decreases ATP generation. When 2DG is administered to animals that eat normally, glucose reaches cells in abundance but the drug prevents most of it from being processed and thus reduces ATP synthesis. Researchers have proposed several explanations for why interruption of glucose processing and ATP production might retard aging. One possibility relates to the ATP-making machinery’s emission of free radicals, which are thought to contribute to aging and to such age-related diseases as cancer by damaging cells. Reduced operation of the machinery should limit their production and thereby constrain the damage. Another hypothesis suggests that decreased processing of glucose could indicate to cells that food is scarce (even if it isn't) and induce them to shift into an anti-aging mode that emphasizes preservation of the organism over such ‘luxuries' as growth and reproduction.

caloric: a measure of the energy value of food.

Read More IELTS Reading Related Articles

Section 2

Solution and Explanation
Questions 28-32:

Do the following statements agree with the claims of the writer in Reading Passage? In boxes 28-32 on your answer sheet, write:

YES if the statement t agrees with the claims of the writer
NO if the statement contradicts the claims of the writer
NOT GIVEN it it is impossible to say what the writer thinks about this

Q28. Drugs available today have been shown to postpone the aging process.

Answer: NO
Supporting Sentence
: As researchers on aging noted recently, no treatment on the market today has been proved to slow human aging.
Keywords
: no treatment, slow human aging
Keyword location
: Paragraph A, Lines 1-2.
Explanation
: According to this paragraph, human aging, the accumulation of molecular and cellular damage that increases our susceptibility to illness as we age, has not been proven to be slowed by any medication currently available.

Q29. Scientific data suggests that consuming less calories may help lengthen human life.

Answer: YES
Supporting Sentence
: Those findings suggest that caloric restriction could delay aging and increase longevity in humans, too.
Keywords
: caloric restriction, delay aging, increase longevity
Keyword location
: Paragraph A, line 5-7
Explanation
: According to this paragraph, a wide range of animals that eat a low-calorie yet nutritionally balanced diet, longevity and overall well being are increased. Caloric restriction may be able to slow the aging process in humans as well.

Q30. Few people will find a calorie-restricted diet appealing.

Answer: YES
Supporting Sentence
: Unfortunately, for maximum benefit, people would probably have to reduce their caloric intake by roughly thirty per cent, equivalent to dropping from 2,500 calories a day to 1,750. Few mortals could stick to that harsh regimen, especially for years on end. But what if someone could create a pill that mimicked the physiological effects of eating less without actually forcing people to eat less?
Keywords
: few mortals, harsh regimen
Keyword location
: paragraph B, Lines 1-4
Explanation
: According to this paragraph, people would generally have to cut their caloric intake by about 30 percent, or from 2,500 to 1,750 calories a day, to reap the most benefits. For years on end, few mortals would be able to adhere to such a taxing diet.

Q31. Diet-related ailments are prevalent in the elderly.

Answer: NOT GIVEN
Supporting Sentence
: Could such a ‘caloric-restriction mimetic’, as we call it, enable people to stay healthy longer, postponing age-related disorders (such as diabetes, arteriosclerosis, heart disease and cancer) until very late in life?
Keywords
: diet-related diseases, common, older people
Keyword location
: Paragraph B, lines 5-7
Explanation
There is no relevant information available associated with this particular question. Thus, the answer is not given.

Q32. In trials, rats who were allowed to eat whatever they pleased lived significantly shorter lives than rats on a low-calorie diet.

Answer: YES
Supporting Sentence
: when they found that rats fed a low-calorie diet lived longer on average than free-feeding rats.
Keywords
: low-calorie diet, lived longer, free-feeding rats
Keyword location
: Paragraph C
Explanation
: According to this paragraph, rats fed a low-calorie diet lived longer on average than rats provided a free-feeding diet and also had a reduced incidence of diseases that become more common in old life.

Questions 33-37:
Classify the following descriptions as relating to

A - caloric-restricted mimetic
B - control monkeys
C- neither caloric-restricted monkeys nor control monkeys

Write the correct letter, A, B or C, in boxes 33-37 on your answer sheet.

  1. Monkeys were less likely to become diabetic.
  2. Monkeys experienced more chronic disease.
  3. Monkeys have been shown to experience a longer than average life span.
  4. Monkeys enjoyed a reduced chance of heart disease.
  5. Monkeys produced greater quantities of insulin.

Q33. Monkeys were less likely to become diabetic.

Answer: A- caloric-restricted mimetic
Supporting Sentence
: The caloric-restricted animals also look better on indicators of risk for age-related diseases. For example, they have lower blood pressure and triglyceride levels (signifying a decreased likelihood of heart disease), and they have more normal blood glucose levels (pointing to a reduced risk for diabetes, which is marked by unusually high blood glucose levels). Further, it has recently been shown that rhesus monkeys kept on caloric-restricted diets for an extended time (nearly 15 years) have less chronic disease.
Keywords
: caloric-restricted monkeys, lower body temperatures, pancreatic hormone insulin
Keyword location
: Paragraph F, lines 1-5
Explanation
: According to this paragraph, it appears that these monkeys have normal blood glucose levels (pointing to a reduced risk for diabetes, which is marked by unusually high blood glucose levels)

Q34. Monkeys experienced more chronic disease.

Answer: B- control monkeys
Supporting Sentence
: Further, it has recently been shown that rhesus monkeys kept on caloric-restricted diets for an extended time (nearly 15 years) have less chronic disease.
Keywords
: chronic disease, rhesus monkeys, extended time
Keyword location
: 5th paragraph, 4th line
Explanation
: According to this paragraph, rhesus monkeys that have been fed a caloric-restricted diet for nearly 15 years had a lower risk of developing chronic disease, according to a recent study.

Q35. Monkeys have been shown to experience a longer than average life span.

Answer: C- neither caloric-restricted monkeys nor control monkeys
Supporting Sentence
: to know whether low-calorie intake can increase both average and maximum lifespans in monkeys. Unlike the multitude of elixirs being touted as the latest anti-aging cure, CR mimetics would alter fundamental processes that underlie aging. We aim to develop compounds that fool cells into activating maintenance and repair.
Keywords
: low-calorie intake, average and maximum lifespans
Keyword location
: Paragraph F, line 8-110
Explanation
: According to this paragraph, further study is needed to see if monkeys can extend their lives by eating a diet that restricts their caloric consumption.

Q36. Monkeys enjoyed a reduced chance of heart disease.

Answer: A- caloric-restricted mimetic
Supporting Sentence
: The caloric-restricted animals also look better on indicators of risk for age-related diseases. For example, they have lower blood pressure and triglyceride levels (signifying a decreased likelihood of heart disease), and they have more normal blood glucose levels (pointing to a reduced risk for diabetes, which is marked by unusually high blood glucose levels).
Keywords
: lower blood pressure, triglyceride levels, heart disease
Keyword location
: Paragraph F, lines 1-4
Explanation
: According to this paragraph, caloric-restricted animals are better suited to detecting signs of aging-related illness. Low triglyceride and hypertension levels are two examples of their improved health (signifying a decreased likelihood of heart disease)

Q37. Monkeys produced greater quantities of insulin.

Answer: B
Supporting Sentence
: caloric-restricted monkeys have lower body temperatures and levels of the pancreatic hormone insulin.
Keywords
: caloric-restricted monkeys, lower body temperatures, pancreatic hormone insulin
Keyword location
: Paragraph H, 1st line
Explanation
: According to this paragraph, as compared to control monkeys who eat regularly, caloric-restricted monkeys have lower body temperatures and insulin levels, as well as more youthful levels of specific hormones that tend to decline with age.

Questions 38-40:
Complete the flowchart below.
Choose NO MORE THAN TWO WORDS from the passage for each answer.
Write your answers in boxes 38-40 on your answer sheet.
How a caloric-restriction mimetic works

Flow chart

Q 38. Less _______ is processed production of ATP is decreased.

Answer: Glucose
Supporting Sentence
: glucose reaches cells in abundance but the drug prevents most of it from being processed.
Keywords
: cells, drug prevents
Keyword location
: Paragraph H, 3rd line
Explanation
: According to this paragraph, animals fed regularly will receive a large amount of glucose, but the medication will prevent most of it from being digested, resulting in decreased ATP generation.

Q39. cells less damaged by disease because fewer ____ are emitted

Answer: free radicals
Supporting Sentence
: One possibility relates to the ATP-making machinery’s emission of free radicals, which are thought to contribute to aging and to such age-related diseases as cancer by damaging cells.
Keywords
: ATP-making machinery, aging, cancer by damaging cells
Keyword location
: Paragraph H, lines 9-11
Explanation
: According to this paragraph, free radicals, which are known to contribute to aging and age-related disorders such as cancer by destroying cells, could be a factor in this. Reducing the amount of time the machinery is in use will help limit the amount of damage it can inflict.

Q40. cells focus on _____ because food is in short supply.

Answer: preservation
Supporting Sentence
: induce them to shift into an anti-aging mode that emphasizes preservation of the organism.
Keywords
: anti-aging mode, preservation of the organism.
Keyword location
: Paragraph H, 9th line
Explanation
: According to this paragraph, another possibility is that a drop in glucose processing could signal cells that food is short (even if it isn't) and cause them to enter an anti-aging mode that prioritizes maintenance of the organism over 'luxuries' like growth and reproduction.

*The article might have information for the previous academic years, please refer the official website of the exam.

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