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This profile is tailored towards students studying biological sciences, however we expect there to be valuable open research questions that could be pursued by students in other disciplines.
Why is this a pressing problem?
The biological ageing process is the most important causal risk factor for frailty and disease. Nearly 50% of deaths worldwide occur at the age of 70 or older. As life expectancy increases over the coming decades, this number will significantly increase and most people will spend a longer time in poor health.
Research targeting major age-related diseases is flourishing, however relatively few scientists study ageing itself. To increase human healthspan effectively, it is useful to shift the focus from the individual diseases that are symptoms of ageing – such as cardiovascular disease and Alzheimer’s – and focus on the underlying cause. This could not only prevent the onset of fatal age-related diseases but also drastically improve the overall quality of life for the elderly.
Ageing is characterised by the functional decline of an organism over time, leading to an exponential increase in mortality. However, although various biological changes have been shown to be correlated with ageing, such as increasing DNA damage and cellular senescence, methylation changes, stem cell dysfunction and increased inflammation, it is still unknown exactly how these processes interact or how much they contribute to ageing overall.
Despite how much is still left to discover, studies have shown it is possible to increase an organism’s healthy lifespan by tackling the ageing process itself. For example, treatment with the drug rapamycin can increase the lifespan of mice by up to 60% and a drug that targets senescent cells can increase fitness, kidney function and hair density in old mice. Preliminary trials seem to support the translatability of both these and other discoveries to humans.
Watch the video below for a short introduction to the value of targeting ageing directly.
Explore existing research
- Cai, Yusheng, et al. (2022) The Landscape of Aging, Science China Life Sciences
- Gems, David & João Pedro de Magalhães (2021) The Hoverfly and the Wasp: A Critique of the Hallmarks of Aging as a Paradigm, Ageing Research Reviews
- Grey, Aubrey D. N. J. de, et al. (2002) Time to Talk SENS: Critiquing the Immutability of Human Aging, Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences
- Lopez-Otin, Carlos, et al. (2013) The Hallmarks of Aging, Cell
- Schmauck-Medina, Tomas, et al. (2022) New Hallmarks of Ageing: A 2022 Copenhagen Ageing Meeting Summary, Aging
Find a thesis topic
If you’re interested in working on this research direction, below are some ideas on what would be valuable to explore further. If you want help refining your research ideas, apply for our coaching!
This report from the Foresight Institute lists many open questions in the field as well as researchers already working on them. You could also explore the research papers linked in this profile to find areas that interest you. See this advice from Michael Rae on choosing a research question and program.
If you can’t work directly on longevity research right away, try to build skills and knowledge to apply later. Cell reprogramming, senescence research, neurodegeneration and protein aggregation, DNA repair and damage systems, autophagy, epigenetics, protein damage, inflammation, the microbiome and mitochondria are some of the areas that are particularly relevant to anti-aging research but also have many other applications.
Further resources
- For a more comprehensive introduction to the field of longevity research, see The Longevity FAQ from José Luis Ricón and Anti-Aging: State of the Art from Jack Harley.
- The Longevity Wiki is an open access education platform on ageing biology research.
- Senescence Info is another educational resource on the science of ageing.
- AgingBiotech lists a number of useful resources in the area such as books, blogs, companies and conferences.
- Ways to accelerate aging research from Adam Marblestone discusses changes needed to move the field forward.
- Human Ageing Genomic Resources is a collection of databases and tools designed to help researchers study the genetics of human ageing.
- Aging Analytics creates reports overviews of the state of the longevity research landscape.
Some introductory videos include:
- How to Become a Biogerontologist: Pursuing a Career in Aging Research – João Pedro de Magalhães
- Advice on getting started in the field of anti-ageing research – Michael Rae
- Less Death is an organisation running summer camps for those who want to begin careers in longevity technology development.
- The Foresight Institute offers one-year fellowships which include workshops, retreats and 1:1 mentorship.
- The SENS Research Foundation Summer Scholars Programme ‘offers undergraduate students the opportunity to conduct biomedical research…under the guidance of a scientific mentor.’
Apply for our coaching and we can connect you with researchers already working in this space, who can help you refine your research ideas. You can also apply to join our community if you’re interested in meeting other students working on this research direction.
Apply for our database of potential supervisors if you’re looking for formal supervision and take a look at our advice on finding a great supervisor for further ideas.
Aging Biotech maintains a list of ageing conferences here which may be helpful for making connections.
Here is a list of researchers and companies involved in longevity research.
Here are some selected research institutes and laboratories working on anti-ageing research:
- Hekimi Lab, Canada
- Max Planck Institute for Biology of Ageing, Germany
- European Research Institute for the Biology of Ageing, Netherlands
- Institute of Healthy Ageing – UCL, UK
- Babraham Institute, UK
- Genomics of Ageing and Rejuvenation Lab, UK
- Buck Institute for Research on Aging, USA
- Gladyshev Lab, USA
- Kaeberlein Lab, USA
- Ocampo Lab, USA
- National Institute on Aging, USA
- The Paul F. Glenn Center for Biology of Aging Research, Harvard and Michigan, USA
- Rochester Aging Research Center, USA
- Brunet Lab, USA
- Wyss-Coray Lab, USA
- SENS Research Foundation, USA
- University of Washington Healthy Aging and Longevity Research Institute, USA
- The Barshop Institute for Longevity and Aging at UT San Antonio, USA
See here for a list of companies working on anti-ageing technologies.
Our funding database can help you find potential sources of funding if you’re a PhD student interested in this research direction. See the list of research labs above for programmes you could apply to.
- Sign up for our newsletter to hear about opportunities such as funding, internships and research roles.
- The FightAging! newsletter includes a weekly summary of the major research papers published in the field, as well as events and resources.
If you’re interested in working on improving human health, you could also explore our profile on reducing physical pain.
Contributors
This profile was last updated 11/11/2022. Thanks to Veerle de Goederen and William Bradshaw for originally creating this profile. Thanks to Jose Luis Ricon, Michael Rae, Cyril Lagger, Anais Equey, Patrick Wilson and Josue Ballesteros for helpful feedback. All mistakes remain our own.
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AI sentience, moral status and rights
How should the possibility of AI sentience guide the development of AI and related institutions and norms?
Alternative proteins research and development
The consumption of animal products causes suffering to billions of animals each year. Alternatives could shift consumer demand away from animal products.
Anti-ageing research
Aging is a major risk factor for many diseases that medical interventions try to prevent. Can we target aging as an underlying cause of disease?
Antimicrobial resistance
Antimicrobial resistance already kills tens of thousands each year, and could kill millions without innovation. What are the best strategies to prevent it?
Applied mental health research
It’s estimated that around 10% of the population suffers from diagnosable mental health conditions, with most of them not receiving treatment.
Attitudes to existential risk and longtermism
To increase the chance of our species having a flourishing future, it’s helpful to understand how we feel and reason about the future of humanity
Behavioural and attitudinal change in animal products consumption
How do attitudes towards animals affect animal product consumption and what interventions are effective in decreasing it?
Black soldier fly sentience and welfare
Black soldier fly may be farmed on a huge scale in the coming decades. To decrease their potential suffering, we need to understand more about their welfare and capacity for sentience.
Cause specific mortality in wild animals
Understanding the causes of wild animal mortality can help us build a picture of the current state of welfare in nature and how we can improve it.
Charitable donations decision-making research
Charitable donations can do a lot of good, but donors rarely prioritise their impact. How can we encourage more effective philanthropy?
Civilisation collapses
Studying past civilisational collapses may help us predict and safeguard against future collapse and increase the chance of recovery.
Consumer research related to alternative proteins
Demand for animal products is increasing but so is the availability of alternatives. How can consumers be encouraged to explore alternative proteins?
Detection and identification of dangerous pathogens
Using metagenomic surveillance and broad-spectrum diagnostics to detect dangerous pathogens.
Developing solutions to climate change
Climate change is already causing suffering on a huge scale, and may increasingly contribute to many different crises in future. Although many resources are already dedicated to this area, there are gaps that further research is needed to fill.
Farmed animal welfare
Animal agriculture causes suffering to billions of animals each year. How can we improve welfare standards as much as possible?
Forecasting the long-term future
To reliably improve the longterm future, we must address the challenge of predicting the longterm impact of our actions
Global health and wellbeing
In 2021 about 9% of the global population was living in extreme poverty. How can we increase living standards and wellbeing in low- and lower-middle-income countries?
Global priorities research
There are many neglected, foundational uncertainties about what it means to improve the world and what actions we should take to do so
Governance of artificial intelligence
AI could radically transform the world, for better or worse. How can AI governance mitigate the risks and increase the chance it contributes to humanity's flourishing?
Great power coordination
How can we coordinate action between the Great Powers to address existential and global catastrophic risks?
Historical persistence and contingency
Improving predictions of the extent to which important features of the world today will persist into the future, and how contingent the future is on the actions we take in the present, could help inform attempts to create long-lasting positive change.
Human-aligned artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence will likely become an increasingly powerful force shaping humanity’s future, so research to align it with human values is vital.
Improving aquatic animal welfare
How can we help the hundreds of billions of aquatic animals that are raised and killed for human consumption every year?
Improving health and wellbeing metrics
Current health and wellbeing metrics have many shortcomings, leading to misallocation of resources. Developing the 'WELBY' could help.
Improving institutional decision-making
Large institutions have vast resources and capacity to help solve global problems. How can we improve their decision-making processes?
Improving pandemic governance
Pandemics pose a humanitarian crisis that could even threaten humanity’s future. How can governments prepare for future pandemics?
Improving the measurement of animal welfare
Wild animals make up the vast majority of sentient beings, but their welfare is highly neglected. One promising approach to understanding their quality of life is comparing rate of biological aging in different populations.
Improving voting methods
Learning how voting systems have been changed in the past to understand how to improve voting systems used today
Insect welfare in farmed, wild, and research contexts
Insect use and management occurs at a scale rarely seen across the animal taxa; despite this scale, their welfare has largely been neglected.
Longtermism
Is improving the far future one of the key moral priorities of our time? If it is, how should this influence our actions?
Mechanistic interpretability
Mechanistic interpretability could help us understand and control the inner workings of AI systems, ensuring that their decision-making aligns with human values and goals.
Medical interventions against dangerous pathogens
To address future pandemics, we need medical interventions against pathogens to be faster to produce, effective against a broad range of threats, and cheaper and easier to produce at scale.
Moral circle expansion
How can we expand humanity's moral circle to create a more compassionate future?
Moral weight research
Foundational research exploring animals’ experiences and moral standing could help prioritize animal welfare interventions
Most important historical trends
A better understanding of historical trends and what they tell us about humanity's trajectory could inform efforts to improve and prepare for the future
Non-pharmaceutical pandemic interventions
How does the transmission of dangerous pathogens occur and how can innovation in areas such as testing, PPE, distancing and contact tracing reduce transmission?
Preventing great power conflict
Great power war could pose an existential risk, while a breakdown in cooperation could undermine vital coordination on many global problems. How can we reduce the risk of conflict?
Preventing the release of dangerous pathogens
How can we reduce the likelihood of intentional or accidental release of dangerous pathogens?
Progress studies
Advances in science, technology, institutions and culture have caused huge improvements in standards of living. How can we increase the rate of progress?
Nuclear war prevention and recovery
Could nuclear winter pose an existential threat to humanity's future and in what scenarios? How can we decrease the risk of nuclear war and increase civilisational resilience?
Reducing physical pain
Hundreds of millions of people live with chronic pain and other intensely painful conditions. What are the most urgent conditions where progress could be made?
Reducing risks from malevolent actors
How can individuals with particularly dangerous personality traits be prevented from gaining power?
Resilient foods research
How would we feed everyone in the event of a global catastrophe, such as the sun being blocked during a nuclear winter or significant disruption to electricity or industry?
Risks from volcanic eruptions
Volcanic eruptions could lead to catastrophe by causing food shortages and disruption to vital global systems. How can we monitor and mitigate the risks?
Space governance
Outer space is an increasingly valuable resource and may one day be permanently settled. How can its use be safe, sustainable and contribute to a flourishing future?
Understanding the impact of social movements
Social movements can significantly improve the world. What factors determine the change a social movement achieves?
Wildlife fertility control research
Many wild animals suffer due to resource competition. Population management of some species via contraception could increase welfare and survival.
See here for a visual map of all our research directions
