… just as the pigment of the hair is destroyed by phagocytes, so also the atrophy of other organs of the body, in old age, is very frequently due to the action of devouring cells which I have called macrophages. —Elie Metchnikoff, The Prolongation of Life (1908) Instead of preventing diseases only by protecting the […]
We cannot retard senescence or reverse its direction, unless we know the nature of the mechanisms which are the substratum of duration [basis of longevity]. —Alexis Carrel, Man the Unknown, 1935 In this set of posts, we take an overall view of what we are up against in the way of aging mechanisms. There are […]
Progress in control of aging was very slow in the early years of gerontological research, a few decades ago. Research ers did not understand why various procedures (such as dietary restriction in young rats) or substances (like RNA) prolonged animal life spans. The discoveries of several mechanisms of aging have vastly accelerated the rate of […]
Read more The Blind Men and the Elephant; or, The Many Mechanisms of Aging III
The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious. It is the source of all true art and all science. He to whom this emotion is a stranger, who can no longer pause to wonder and stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead: his eyes are closed. —Albert Einstein Most biological experiments […]
Read more Prolonging Life in the Laboratory; or, Why Animal Experiments Are Relevant to Humans
“A vitamin C is a vitamin C is a vitamin C.” A synthetic (made by a chemical factory) molecule of vitamin C is exactly the same as a natural (made by a plant’s biochemical factory) molecule of vitamin C. It is argued that there may be nutritional cofactors (some possibly unidentified) accompanying natural vitamins. It […]
You say nothing’s right but natural things … you fool. Poison oak is a natural plant—why don’t you put some in your food? I don’t care if there’s chemicals in it, as long as my lettuce is crisp! Preservatives might just be preserving you,I think that’s something you missed! —”Eat Starch Mom,” lyrics by Grace […]
In scientifically sound studies, researchers allow for variations by using a device called controls. Controls are experimental subjects who are exposed to exactly the same conditions as the test subjects—those receiving treatment— except that they do not receive the treatment being tested. Ideally, this should be the only variable between control and experimental groups. Controls […]
Successful prediction by a hypothesis is considered strong evidence in support of its validity. Thus, tests for various logical consequences of a hypothesis are devised. For example, Einstein’s general theory of relativity required that a ray of light passing a massive object (such as a star) would be bent by the gravitational field of that […]
Don’t ever confuse hard work with hard thinking. —James Watson, Nobel laureate One famous doctor says, “Eat mostly starches and little fats or protein.” Another famous doctor claims, with equal vigor, “Eat mostly protein, little starches or fats.” A third doctor argues against both of them by citing a research study indicating that Eskimos on […]
Death, be not proud, though some have called thee Mighty and dreadful; for thou art not so…. And Death shall be no more: Death, thou shalt die! —John Donne (1573-1631) The consequences to ourselves and our society of greatly extended human life span are sure to be far reaching. An extended life span does not […]