Revolutionizing Longevity Through Evolutionary Biology
At ReGENE, we derive molecular targets for longevity from evolutionary causes of aging. Our research delves into how natural selection may favor mechanisms that ensure reproductive success in youth, potentially contributing to aging later in life.
The Evolutionary Perspective
Natural selection does not always favor our long and healthy lives. It will support molecular mechanisms that ensure fitness and reproductive success at a young age even if it destroys your health later in life. A molecular mechanism may have opposite health effects at different ages only if these life stages are biologically distinct. For example, a molecular mechanism may not be equally beneficial if it operates in as different organisms as a caterpillar and a butterfly.
In mammals, the boundary between the most physiologically distinct stages of life is marked by growth arrest. At that moment metabolic pathways undergo significant remodeling to redirect nutrients from growth and development to energy storage, regenerative mechanisms are suppressed, and the reproductive system reaches full capacity.
Insights from Evolutionary Biology
Many species without distinct life stages have negligible aging and long lifespans (e.g. many species of fish, turtles, crocodiles, lobsters, bivalve mollusks, vestimentiferans, cnidarians, and others).
Evolutionary considerations predict that molecular mechanisms of growth and development become major drivers of aging after growth arrest. This prediction is supported by extensive data indicating that in species with arrested growth, experimental suppression of growth and development pathways results in unparalleled increases in lifespan and health span. Read more about the link between growth and aging Read more…
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