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Pigs with POLG D260A mutation model accelerated mitochondrial aging Researchers edited the POLG gene, which proofreads mitochondrial DNA copies, to create an accelerated aging model in pigs. The work was described in Science Advances on 28 August and details 12 pigs that carry the D260A substitution in both copies of POLG. These animals accumulated mitochondrial DNA mutations, and ear‑derived connective tissue cells consumed less oxygen under both basal and maximal conditions. None of the pigs lived longer than seven months. POLG encodes the polymerase that replicates mtDNA; its built‑in exonuclease proofreads the new strand for errors. The authors changed aspartic acid at position 260 to alanine, creating the D260A variant. This mirrors a 2004 mouse study where the analogous D257A substitution increased mtDNA point mutations three‑fivefold and produced early aging‑like traits in 2004. The edit was first introduced into fetal 🔗 Read original →