Challenges of Biological Aging

Edward J. Masoro, PhD, was the chairman of the UTHSCSA Physiology Department for many years. Currently a professor emeritus, has has served as President of the Gerontological Society of America.

Preface

Acknowledgments

Aging: A Biological Puzzle


The Puzzle

Mortality Risk

Anatomical and Physiological Changes

Age-Associated Diseases

Concept of Biological Age

Genetics

Universality

Demography and the Societal Challenge


Population Mortality Data

Factors Determining Population Age Structure

Societal Impact of Changing Age Structure

Need for Biomedical Breakthroughs

Why Aging Occurs


Evolutionary Biology

History of Evolutionary Theories of Aging

Current Evolutionary Theory of Aging

Genetic Mechanisms in the Evolution of Aging

Evidence Supporting the Evolutionary Theory

How Aging Occurs


Overview

Theories, Hypotheses, and Concepts

Conclusions

Biological Basis of Aging: A Unifying Concept


Evolutionary Theory as a Guide

The Disposable Soma Theory of Aging

"Private" and "Public" Proximate Mechanisms of Aging

Unifying Concept

The Human Aging Phenotype


Body Structure and Composition

Skin

Musculoskeletal System

Nervous System

Cardiovascular System

Respiratory System

Renal and Urinary System

Gastrointestinal System

Endocrine and Metabolic Function

Female Reproductive System

Male Reproductive System

Immune System

Thermoregulation

Possible Interventions to Retard Aging

Dietary Restriction in Rodents

Proposed Pharmacological Interventions

Lifestyle and Environmental Factors

Index