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LIFE SPAN REGULATORS. “Our results suggest that the worm and human longevity networks are functionally relevant and possess a high predictive power for identifying new longevity regulators.” http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0048282 View in LinkedIn

GENES AND LIFE SPAN. “Curran and Ruvkun explored this overlooked gene set by inactivating essential genes postdevelopmentally, revealing 64 genes required for development that extend lifespan when inactivated during adulthood. Nevertheless, many important longevity genes likely remain unidentified.” http://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0048282 View in LinkedIn

DARWINIAN LIFE SPAN. “We interpret life span as an inherent property of self-organizing systems that, accordingly, maintain species-specific limits for the entire complex of fitness traits. We conclude that Darwinian approaches provide unique opportunities to discover the biological bases of longevity as well as devise individual specific medical or other interventions toward improving health span.” http://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1007/978-1-4939-2404-2_1 View in LinkedIn

MANY VARIABLES. “The identification of longevity-related genes does not explain the mechanisms of healthy aging and longevity rather pose questions on epigenetic contribution, gene regulation and the interactions with essential genomes, i.e. mitochondrial DNA and microbiota. To fully disentangle what appears to be an endless quest, all the components of the complexity of human longevity genetics are taken into account.” http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/ben/cvp/2014/00000012/00000005/art00007 View in LinkedIn

METABOLISM AND LONGEVITY. “We found that processes such as lipid metabolism and cholesterol catabolism show such patterns of selection and suggest a link between the evolution of lipid metabolism, cholesterol catabolism, and the evolution of longevity. Lastly, we found evidence that the proteasome–ubiquitin system is under selection specific to lineages where longevity increased and suggest that its selection had a role in the evolution of longevity.” http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11357-011-9361-y View in LinkedIn

ANTI-AGING RESEARCH is a relatively new scientific discipline that has been confounded by the snake-oil brews and claims of the cosmetics industry. Stepping back from this veritable noise, the fact remains that many cellular systems employ strategies that confer remarkable longevity. As these strategies are better understood, and the genes responsible cloned, the opportunities in the future for aging plasticity in man look promising. View in LinkedIn

CROSS-TAXA ANALYSIS. “Thanks to recent large-scale genome sequencing efforts, the genomes of multiple species have been sequenced and can be used for cross-species comparisons to study species divergence in longevity. By analyzing proteins under accelerated evolution in several mammalian lineages where maximum lifespan increased, we identified genes and processes that are candidate targets of selection when longevity evolves.” http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11357-011-9361-y View in LinkedIn

MANY APPROACHES to slowing aging are being explored by researchers, ranging from telomere modulators, stem cells and modulators, caloric restriction, antioxidants, hormones, to oxidative metabolism strategies. This relatively new field is finding, not surprisingly, that the complex process of aging is multifactorial, but also that it appears malleable. The fact that some creatures show apparent immortality suggests that there are options. View in LinkedIn

TRANSCRIPTION FACTOR CANDIDATES. “FoxO transcription factors promote longevity across taxa. How they do so is poorly understood. In contrast to previous studies suggesting that DAF-16F plays a more prominent role in life span control than DAF-16A, isoform-specific daf-16/FoxO mutant phenotypes and whole transcriptome profiling revealed a predominant role for DAF-16A over DAF-16F in life span control, stress resistance, and target gene regulation.” https://lnkd.in/eP_v6ZE View in LinkedIn

CHANGING EVOLUTION. “Darpa is looking to re-write the laws of evolution to the military’s advantage, creating “synthetic organisms” that can live forever — or can be killed with the flick of a molecular switch. As part of its budget for the next year, Darpa is investing $6 million into a project called BioDesign, with the goal of eliminating “the randomness of natural evolutionary advancement.” https://lnkd.in/dr8DZSH View in LinkedIn