U.S researchers have discovered that rapamycin; a drug that has been called the "forever young" drug was created from a chemical found in the soil of the remote Easter Island.

The drug is of interest to researchers because it can help treat Progeria a rare genetic disorder that causes children to prematurely age at eight to ten times the normal rate. The Hutchinson Gilford Progeria Syndrome (HGPS) affects one child out of every 4 million to 8 million children worldwide. Currently there are only 78 children diagnosed with the disease around the world.

HGPS causes a protein called progerin to build up in the cells which causes them to age at a much faster rate. The study published in the journal Science Translational Medicine showed that rapamycin could clean the cells of progerin leaving only healthy cells. The discovery is still being tested in laboratories but it could mean a potential cure for the disease.

"Part of the problem with aging starts when debris is accumulating in the cells and it's not getting removed, and this particular drug is able to enhance the removal process," Dimitri Krainc, a professor of neurology at Massachusetts General Hospital and lead author of the study, said. "It would be too optimistic to say this could completely cure Progeria patients, but we're hoping that this drug could make these kids live longer with fewer complications."

Other researchers are already looking beyond using the drug for progeria. Pioneering genetic scientist Francis Collins and other colleagues from the Harvard Medical School are expected to start looking for other uses of the drug. HGPS and the normal ageing process have similar symptoms so rapamycin could theoretically help slow down the normal ageing process.

Rapamycin is already used in organ transplants as a way to suppress the patient's immune system.

"Parents and patients have reason to be hopeful and excited," Krainc added. "It's a devastating illness, and these effects are pretty dramatic. We really hope that this will help translate into clinical treatment."