The man who wants to beat back aging

[Hamilcar]

http://news.sciencemag.org/biology/2015/09/feature-man-who-wants-beat-back-aging

tl;dr: scientist conducts first study to combat aging, not just age-related diseases. May shift research direction.

Modern biology is just cool.

[Valmy]

I am hoping on this kicking in before I turn 60. Come on Bio guys!

[The Brain]

We already know how to stop aging.

[garbon]

It seems me that a better summary is that they are just going to be looking out to see if a well known, now cheap generic can delay/prevent old people from getting diseases often associated with old age. Oh and a hint that if the FDA sanctioned this, it would make looking into anti-aging something legitimate for drug research.

[Eddie Teach]

We already know how to stop aging.

The grail gives immortality, but doesn't appear to stop aging.

[jimmy olsen]

We already know how to stop aging.

The grail gives immortality, but doesn't appear to stop aging.

He doesn't look like a Mummy, so he either stopped aging at some point or he found the grail when he was already old.

[Syt]

When 900 years you reach, look as good you will not.

[Tamas]

I am afraid there is a very good evolutionary/biological reason why organisms of self-killing (ie aging) cells became the dominant way of doing life. There must be something about not being able to keep things organised and efficient otherwise.

[celedhring]

I guess that from an evolutionary standpoint, it's not efficient to have older specimens sticking around for too long and competing for resources with the younger ones.

[Tamas]

I guess that from an evolutionary standpoint, it's not efficient to have older specimens sticking around for too long and competing for resources with the younger ones.

What I meant is that probably not-aging cells always get unstable and fucked up while a series of suiciding cells live shorter but stable existences and on the long run their "species" outlived the "immortal" cells.

[celedhring]

Wasn't really objecting to what you said, for what little I have read it's claimed we would have much more trouble with cancer if we didn't age. Was merely citing another mechanism that would make eternal youth undesirable.

[Valmy]

Wasn't really objecting to what you said, for what little I have read it's claimed we would have much more trouble with cancer if we didn't age. Was merely citing another mechanism that would make eternal youth undesirable.

Um we are going to die anyway. Why suffer through old age while doing it? But maybe I do not understand what 'more trouble' means here. Would we all die before 60 if we didn't age?

[Fate]

Any benefit of metformin in mortality from this study will be confounded by weight loss which is a known side effect of the drug. It'd be like publishing a study that shows 45 minutes of physical activity a day and eating less calories than your basal metabolic rate is "anti-aging."

[MadBurgerMaker]

Google is getting in on anti-aging/longevity research too.  They just recently hired away one of the Big Deal researchers from...the department that mine cooperates with a lot.  Essentially promised her unlimited money (no more begging the government for funding), although I think she has to leave her mole rat colony here.

[Hamilcar]

I am afraid there is a very good evolutionary/biological reason why organisms of self-killing (ie aging) cells became the dominant way of doing life. There must be something about not being able to keep things organised and efficient otherwise.

There's an very interesting argument made by some people that aging is a sensible evolutionary adaptation:
http://io9.com/are-limited-lifespans-an-evolutionary-adaptation-1710634703