Brooke Greenberg is 16 years old now (the picture shows her at age 11), but hasn’t aged since she was an infant. Understanding her condition could provide an insight into the genetics of aging.

Richard Walker of the University of South Florida College of Medicine thinks that Brooke is the first recorded case of what he describes as “developmental disorganization.” His hypothesis is that the cause is disruption of an as-yet unidentified gene, or genes, that hold the key to aging by orchestrating how an organism matures to adulthood, reproduces, then gradually ages and dies.

Brooke’s condition could give important leads to the identity of this master regulator.