How the effects of aging and stresses of life are integrated in mortality rates: insights for genetic studies of human health and longevity.
Increasing proportions of elderly individuals in developed countries combined with substantial increases in related medical expenditures make the improvement of the health of the elderly a high priority today. If the process of aging by individuals is a major cause of age related health declines then postponing aging could be an efficient strategy for improving the health of the elderly. Implementing this strategy requires a better understanding of genetic and non-genetic connections among aging, health, and longevity. We review progress and problems in research areas whose development may contribute to analyses of such connections. These include genetic studies of human aging and longevity, the heterogeneity of populations with respect to their susceptibility to disease and death, forces that shape age patterns of human mortality, secular trends in mortality decline, and integrative mortality modeling using longitudinal data. The dynamic involvement of genetic factors in (i) morbidity/mortality risks, (ii) responses to stresses of life, (iii) multi-morbidities of many elderly individuals, (iv) trade-offs for diseases, (v) genetic heterogeneity, and (vi) other relevant aging-related health declines, underscores the need for a comprehensive, integrated approach to analyze the genetic connections for all of the above aspects of aging-related changes. The dynamic relationships among aging, health, and longevity traits would be better understood if one linked several research fields within one conceptual framework that allowed for efficient analyses of available longitudinal data using the wealth of available knowledge about aging, health, and longevity already accumulated in the research field.
The Biodemography of Aging Research Unit, Social Science Research Institute, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA. aiy@duke.edu.|The Biodemography of Aging Research Unit, Social Science Research Institute, Duke University, 2024 W. Main Street, Room A102E, Durham, NC, 27705, USA. aiy@duke.edu.
Anatoliy I
AI
Yashin
The Biodemography of Aging Research Unit, Social Science Research Institute, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA.
Konstantin G
KG
Arbeev
The Biodemography of Aging Research Unit, Social Science Research Institute, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA.
Liubov S
LS
Arbeeva
The Biodemography of Aging Research Unit, Social Science Research Institute, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA.
Deqing
D
Wu
The Biodemography of Aging Research Unit, Social Science Research Institute, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA.
Igor
I
Akushevich
The Biodemography of Aging Research Unit, Social Science Research Institute, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA.
Mikhail
M
Kovtun
The Biodemography of Aging Research Unit, Social Science Research Institute, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA.
Arseniy
A
Yashkin
The Biodemography of Aging Research Unit, Social Science Research Institute, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA.
Alexander
A
Kulminski
The Biodemography of Aging Research Unit, Social Science Research Institute, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA.
Irina
I
Culminskaya
The Biodemography of Aging Research Unit, Social Science Research Institute, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA.
Eric
E
Stallard
The Biodemography of Aging Research Unit, Social Science Research Institute, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA.
Miaozhu
M
Li
The Biodemography of Aging Research Unit, Social Science Research Institute, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA.|The Biodemography of Aging Research Unit, Social Science Research Institute, Duke University, 2024 W. Main Street, Room A105, Durham, NC, 27705, USA.
Svetlana V
SV
Ukraintseva
D017677:Age Distribution; D000375:Aging / Q000235:genetics*; D004198:Disease Susceptibility / Q000401:mortality*; D005260:Female; D005819:Genetic Markers / Q000235:genetics; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics*; D006304:Health Status; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D008136:Longevity / Q000235:genetics*; D008297:Male; D008957:Models, Genetic; D009026:Mortality; D012307:Risk Factors; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000235:genetics* / Q000401:mortality*; D015996:Survival Rate
D005819:Genetic Markers
Genetic heterogeneity; Health of the elderly; Longitudinal data; Pleiotropy; Population aging; Quadratic hazard