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Maximum life spanMaximum life span is a measure of the maximum number of years a member of a group has been observed to survive. Maximum life span literally corresponds to the age at which the oldest known member of a species or experimental group has died, or the current age of the oldest living member, if higher. Maximum life span is contrasted to mean life span (average lifespan or life expectancy). Mean life span varies with susceptibility to disease, accident, suicide and homicide, whereas maximum life span is determined by "rate of aging". Epistemologically maximum life span also depends upon initial sample size.[1] In animal studies, maximum life span is typically taken to be the mean life span of the most long-lived 10% of a given cohort. This may be taken to be "definition 2" of 'maximum life span.' Additional recommended knowledge
OverviewThe oldest recognized person on record is Jeanne Calment, a French woman who lived for 122 years and 164 days. Maximum life span for humans has remained about 115−120 calendar years throughout recorded history, despite steady improvements in life expectancy. Reduction of infant mortality has accounted for most of this increased average longevity, but since the 1960s mortality rates among those over 80 years has decreased by about 1.5% per year. Advances in medicine, calorie restriction with adequate nutrition, or other interventions are said to have slowed the aging process. Although calorie restriction has not been proven to extend the maximum human life span, as of 2006, results in ongoing primate studies are promising[3]. The differences between life span between species demonstrate the role of genetics in determining maximum life span ("rate of aging"). The records (in years) are these:
The longest-lived vertebrates have been variously described as
Invertebrate species that continue to grow (e.g., clams, coral) can live hundreds of years, such as these:
Plants tend to come in annuals, biennials, and perennials. The longer-lived perennials, woody-stemmed plants such as trees and bushes, often live for hundreds and even thousands of years (one may question whether or not they may die of old age). A giant sequoia, General Sherman is alive and well in its second millenary. A Great Basin Bristlecone Pine Methuselah is 4838 years and Prometheus was older, 4844 years, when it was cut down in 1964. Although considered fiction for a time, recent research has indicated that bowhead whales recently killed still had harpoons in their bodies from the 1790s, which, along with analysis of amino acids, has indicated a maximum life span, so far, of at least 211 years [4]. Birds and squirrels rarely live to their maximum life span, usually dying of accidents and disease. Grazing animals show wear and tear to their teeth to the point where they can no longer eat, and they die of starvation. The maximum life span of most species has not been accurately determined, because the data collection has been minimal and the number of species studied in captivity (or by monitoring in the wild) has been small. Maximum life span is usually longer for species that are larger, can fly, and have larger brains. Of the approximately 20,000 to 25,000 genes in the human genome, it is estimated that only 2% of these are different from those of a chimpanzee, which has an average lifespan of 52 years. The difference in longevity could be due to as few as a hundred genes or less; however there may be other factors that influence the life span of chimpanzees. Identical twins tend to die within 3 years of each other, whereas fraternal twins tend to die within 6 years. Aging theories associated with DNA include programmed aging (or programmed aging-resistance) and theories that link aging with DNA damage/mutation or DNA repair capability. Increasing maximum life spanCurrently, the only (non-transgenic) method of increasing maximum life span that is recognized by biogerontologists is calorie restriction with adequate nutrition. "Maximum life span" here means the mean life span of the most long-lived 10% of a given cohort, as caloric restriction has not yet been shown to break mammalian world records for longevity. Rats, mice, and hamsters experience maximum life-span extension from a diet that contains 40–60% of the calories (but all of the required nutrients) that the animals consume when they can eat as much as they want. Mean life span is increased 65% and maximum life span is increased 50%, when caloric restriction is begun just before puberty. (For a recent review of maximum life span extension by calorie restriction in rodent studies, see GENES & DEVELOPMENT; Koubova,J; 17(3):313-321 (2003)[5]). For fruit flies the life extending benefits of calorie restriction are gained immediately at any age upon beginning calorie restriction and ended immediately at any age upon resuming full feeding (SCIENCE; Mair,W; 301:1731-1733 (2003)[6]). Mammals fed anti-oxidants show up to a 30% increase in mean life span, but no increase in maximum life span. Antioxidants are most valuable for animals that are cancer-prone or subjected to radiation or chemical toxins. There are evidently homeostatic mechanisms in cells that govern the amount of allowable antioxidant activity. Many life-extensionists have dismissed the value of antioxidants simply because they have not been shown to increase maximum life span, but such a view neglects the significance of an extended mean life span. On the other hand Michael Ristow's laboratory has recently shown that antioxidants may prevent extension of life span: Increased activity of intracellular organelles named mitochondria due to impaired metabolism of the nutritive sugar glucose extends life span of a model organism, the worm Caenorhabditis elegans. This extension occurs (completely unexpectedly) by increasing oxidative stress due to increased mitochondrial activity. Most importantly the life-extending effect of the low-sugar diet is abolished by various antioxidants, suggesting that induction of oxidative stress may be required for health and extended life expectancy. [7] This latter process has been previously named mitohormesis or mitochondrial hormesis on a purely hypothetical basis, [8] and suggests that increased mitochondrial activity and specifically generation of oxidative stress due to this metabolic increase exert positive biological effects ultimately promoting health. These findings fundamentally question the hypothesis of Denham Harman, and provide a mechanistic basis for the questionable use of antioxidants in humans. [9]
Some biomedical gerontologists (gerontologists who search for ways to extend maximum life span) believe that biomedical molecular engineering can someday extend maximum lifespan and even bring about rejuvenation. One such researcher is Aubrey de Grey, who calls his project to reverse the damage called aging SENS (Strategies for Engineered Negligible Senescence). Dr. de Grey has established the The Methuselah Mouse Prize to award money to researchers who can extend the maximum life span of mice. Research data concerning maximum life span
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This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Maximum_life_span". A list of authors is available in Wikipedia. |