Aging

Age-Related Diseases (Aging) Part 4

Diabetes The appearance of life on Earth was made possible to a great extent by the presence of glucose in the oceans and the ability of the first cells to use this sugar as a source of energy. To this day glucose is central to energy metabolism in animals, plants, and microbes. In mammals defects […]

Geriatrics (Aging)

Geriatrics is a branch of the biomedical sciences devoted to helping the elderly (over 65 years old) deal with the effects of age. The geriatric approach does not try to reverse the aging process but rather to minimize its consequences by reducing or inhibiting the progression to disability. This effort, conducted in hospitals, clinics, and […]

Rejuvenation (Aging)

The treatment of the aging process and of the diseases associated with it could lead to the rejuvenation of the body, life-extension, and immortality. Such an endeavor, however, would be extremely difficult, and the mere suggestion of it is highly controversial. Many scientists believe there is no such thing as a treatment that will reverse […]

Clinical Trials (Aging)

According to data provided by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), more than 3,000 clinical trials have been launched since the late 1990s to test potential therapies for age-related diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease (AD), cardiovascular disease (CVD), osteoporosis, and Parkinson’s disease. These trials typically enroll anywhere from 50 to 5,000 subjects and can last […]

Resource Center (Aging) Part 1

Studying the aging process is a complex endeavor that depends on an understanding of cell biology and a variety of research techniques known as biotechnology. This topic provides an introduction to these topics as well as brief discussions of gene therapy, the human genome project, and the design of clinical trials. Cell biology A cell […]

Resource Center (Aging) Part 2

Macromolecules of the cell The six basic molecules are used by all cells to construct five essential macromolecules: proteins, RNA, DNA, phospholipids, and polysaccharides. Macromolecules have primary, secondary, and tertiary structural levels. The primary structural level refers to the chain that is formed by linking the building blocks together. The secondary structure involves the bending […]

Resource Center (Aging) Part 3

Mitosis Mitosis is divided into four stages: prophase, metaphase, anaphase, and telophase. The behavior and movement of the chromosomes characterize each stage. At prophase, DNA replication has already occurred and the nuclear membrane begins to break down. Condensation of the duplicated chromosomes initiates the phase (i.e. the very long, thin chromosomes are folded up to […]

Resource Center (Aging) Part 4

Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) PCR is simply repetitive DNA replication over a limited, primer defined, region of a suitable template. It provides a way of amplifying a short segment of DNA without going through the cloning procedures described above. The region defined by the primers is amplified to such an extent that it can be […]

Glossary (Aging) Part 1

acetyl A chemical group derived from acetic acid that is important in energy metabolism and for the modification of proteins. acetylcholine A neurotransmitter released at axonal terminals by cholinergic neurons, found in the central and peripheral nervous systems and released at the vertebrate neuromuscular junction. acetyl-CoA A water-soluble molecule, coenzyme A (CoA) that carries acetyl […]

Glossary (Aging) Part 2

fat A lipid material, consisting of triglycerides (fatty acids bound to glycerol), that is stored adipocytes as an energy reserve. fatty acid A compound that has a carboxylic acid attached to a long hydrocarbon chain. A major source of cellular energy and a component of phospholipids. fertilization The fusion of haploid male and female gametes […]

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