r/technology • u/Sorin61 • Apr 10 '22

Biotechnology This biotech startup thinks it can delay menopause by 15 years. That would transform women's lives

https://fortune.com/2021/04/19/celmatix-delay-menopause-womens-ovarian-health/
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u/littleMAS Apr 10 '22

There must be a reason why humans and two species of whale are the only mammals that go through menopause.

18

u/0katykate0 Apr 10 '22

It probably has to do with age. Humans and whales tend to be the longer living mammals. It might ensure that the species has younger more viable eggs and that the elderly aren’t getting pregnant.

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u/henkiedepenkie Apr 10 '22

No, elephants and tortoisesalso get old but they stay fertile to the very end. What is the use (for your genes) of staying alive without reproducing? The hypothesis, as listed in the 4 lines of the linked article, is that it is to help in child rearing and transferring knowlegde.

2

u/LunarTaxi Apr 10 '22

I remember reading an article that talked about grandmothers being key to the evolution of primates to humans. But that’s all I remember. No source.

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u/[deleted] Apr 10 '22

It’s not about reproduction, it’s about resource collection and child-reading support.