Six AFAR experts contributed articles to Volume 29, Issue 4 of the Public Policy & Aging Report, now available online.
In the special issue, “Is Aging Still a Disease? Perspectives from Geroscience”, the AFAR-affiliated authors demonstrate that through interventions that impact the aging process itself, rather than through a focus on individual diseases, the scientific community can achieve a greater impact on both life and health expectancies.
The experts argue that aging itself is not a disease, but rather is the biggest risk factor for a wide range of chronic diseases. This is a central tenet of the emerging field of geroscience, which seeks to define the biological mechanisms that underly the diseases of aging — with the goal of slowing human aging to delay or prevent many diseases simultaneously.
The journal is guest edited by AFAR multiple grantee Matt Kaeberlein, PhD. The articles authored by AFAR experts include:
“It is Time to Embrace 21st Century Medicine,” by Matt Kaeberlein, PhD. Dr. Kaeberlein is a 2006 Glenn Foundation for Medical Research and AFAR Grants for Junior Faculty recipient, and a 2007 Glenn Foundation for Medical Research Breakthroughs in Gerontology (BIG) Award recipient. He is also the Co-Director at the University of Washington Nathan Shock Center of Excellence in the Basic Biology of Aging, the Director of the Healthy Aging and Longevity Research Institute, the President of the American Aging Association, the Co-Director of the Dog Aging Project, and a Professor at UW Medicine.
“Time for a New Strategy in the War on Alzheimer’s Disease,” also authored by Dr. Kaeberlein.
“The Longevity Dividend: A Brief Update,” authored by S. Jay Olshansky, PhD. Dr. Olshansky is an AFAR board member and 2016 Irving S. Wright Award recipient. He is currently a Professor in the School of Public Health at the University of Illinois at Chicago, a Research Associate at the Center on Aging at the University of Chicago and at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, and the Chief Scientist at Lapetus Solutions, Inc.
“A Regulatory Pathway for Medicines That Target Aging,” co-authored by Nir Barzilai, MD. Dr. Barzilai is AFAR’s Deputy Scientific Director, a 1994 Glenn Foundation for Medical Research and AFAR Grants for Junior Faculty recipient, a 1997 Paul B. Beeson Emerging Leaders Career Development Award in Aging scholar, a 2010 Irving S. Wright Award winner, and theDirector at the Institute for Aging Research and distinguished Professor at Albert Einstein College of Medicine.
“International Investment in Geroscience,” co-authored by Sean X. Leng, MD, PhD, and Brian K. Kennedy, PhD. Dr. Leng is a 2006 Paul B. Beeson Emerging Leaders Career Development Award in Aging scholar. He is also a Professor in the Division of Geriatric Medicine and Gerontology in the Department of Medicine at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, as well as the President of the Milstein Medical Asian American Partnership Foundation. Dr. Kennedy is a 2003 Glenn Foundation for Medical Research and AFAR Grants for Junior Faculty recipient, and a 2008 Medical Student Training in Aging Research (MSTAR) program awardee. He is also a Professor at the Buck Institute for Research on Aging.
“Is Old Age or Aging a Disease, in a Literal or Metaphorical Sense?” authored by Stephen B. Kritchevsky, PhD. Dr. Kritchevsky is the Co-Principal Investigator of the Research Centers Collaborative Network of the National Institute of Aging, NIH, which AFAR also manages. Dr. Kritchevsky is also the Co-PI of the TAME Trial’s Clinical and Multi-Center studies.
Published by the Gerontological Society of America (GSA), the journal highlights existing studies as well as recommended areas for further research.
Read the entire journal issue, “Is Aging Still a Disease? Perspectives from Geroscience,” here.
