What inspired you to pursue aging research?
Since I was a child, I have always been interested in living organisms and how life works. One of the reasons I love biology is that it involves many disciplines (ecology, evolution, physics, mathematics, etc.). In particular, I found it extremely interesting to be able to apply different disciplines in the field of aging to understand how and why organisms age. For example, we can study aging from a molecular perspective but also from an ecological view. Another inspiration came from the fact that if we study the biology of aging, we can reduce the occurrence of different age-related disorders instead of focusing on single diseases.
In your view, what does AFAR mean to the field, and what does it mean, for you, to receive an AFAR grant now?
AFAR has been crucial in supporting basic research on aging. Fundamental discoveries are essential for the advancement of the medical system. Thus, AFAR not only plays a vital role in various areas of aging biology, from cognition to sarcopenia, but it sends a strong message to the entire scientific community, emphasizing the importance of aging research and the need for sustained support. Receiving the AFAR grant will allow us to accelerate our project by pursuing new approaches toward understanding how the nervous system modulates longevity. As a Junior PI, receiving this funding is an enormous honor that will boost my scientific career in the aging field.
What is exciting about your research’s potential impact?
Our proposal is exciting because it challenges prevailing views that the regulation of histone marks occurs only cell-autonomously in peripheral tissues and cell types. We will examine the mechanisms by which neuronal signals coordinate to modulate systemic histone marks and longevity cell-nonautonomously. Since all animals (except sea sponges) sense and react to their environment, in the first instance, through their nervous system, studying how the nervous system orchestrates systemic responses is critical to understanding the complex relationship of the environment, epigenetics, and aging. Therefore, defining these mechanisms in genetically tractable model systems such as C. elegans is critical, as it will guide studies in mammalian systems and expedite the translation of aging studies to usable therapeutics for age-onset diseases in humans.
How would you describe your research to a non-scientist?
We, as humans, are centered around the brain, which controls behavior, emotions, and physiology. The nervous system is crucial in processing complex information and coordinating responses throughout the whole body. By studying fundamental mechanisms of how the nervous system maintains overall organismal balance, we can gain insights into how this system affects the aging process. Therefore, targeting neuronal pathways could be a promising avenue to promote healthy aging.
