TY - JOUR
T1 - Living Long and Well: Prospects for a Personalized Approach to the Medicine of Ageing
AU - Fuellen, Georg
AU - Schofield, Paul
AU - Flatt, Thomas
AU - Schulz, Ralf Joachim
AU - Boege, Fritz
AU - Kraft, Karin
AU - Rimbach, Gerald
AU - Ibrahim, Saleh
AU - Tietz, Alexander
AU - Schmidt, Christian
AU - Köhling, Rüdiger
AU - Simm, Andreas
PY - 2016/6/15
Y1 - 2016/6/15
N2 - Research into ageing and its underlying molecular basis enables us to develop and implement targeted interventions to ameliorate or cure its consequences. However, the efficacy of interventions often differs widely between individuals, suggesting that populations should be stratified or even individualized. Large-scale cohort studies in humans, similar systematic studies in model organisms as well as detailed investigations into the biology of ageing can provide individual validated biomarkers and mechanisms, leading to recommendations for targeted interventions. Human cohort studies are already ongoing, and they can be supplemented by in silico simulations. Systematic studies in animal models are made possible by the use of inbred strains or genetic reference populations of mice. Combining the two, a comprehensive picture of the various determinants of ageing and 'health span' can be studied in detail, and an appreciation of the relevance of results from model organisms to humans is emerging. The interactions between genotype and environment, particularly the psychosocial environment, are poorly studied in both humans and model organisms, presenting serious challenges to any approach to a personalized medicine of ageing. To increase the success of preventive interventions, we argue that there is a pressing need for an individualized evaluation of interventions such as physical exercise, nutrition, nutraceuticals and calorie restriction mimetics as well as psychosocial and environmental factors, separately and in combination. The expected extension of the health span enables us to refocus health care spending on individual prevention, starting in late adulthood, and on the brief period of morbidity at very old age.
AB - Research into ageing and its underlying molecular basis enables us to develop and implement targeted interventions to ameliorate or cure its consequences. However, the efficacy of interventions often differs widely between individuals, suggesting that populations should be stratified or even individualized. Large-scale cohort studies in humans, similar systematic studies in model organisms as well as detailed investigations into the biology of ageing can provide individual validated biomarkers and mechanisms, leading to recommendations for targeted interventions. Human cohort studies are already ongoing, and they can be supplemented by in silico simulations. Systematic studies in animal models are made possible by the use of inbred strains or genetic reference populations of mice. Combining the two, a comprehensive picture of the various determinants of ageing and 'health span' can be studied in detail, and an appreciation of the relevance of results from model organisms to humans is emerging. The interactions between genotype and environment, particularly the psychosocial environment, are poorly studied in both humans and model organisms, presenting serious challenges to any approach to a personalized medicine of ageing. To increase the success of preventive interventions, we argue that there is a pressing need for an individualized evaluation of interventions such as physical exercise, nutrition, nutraceuticals and calorie restriction mimetics as well as psychosocial and environmental factors, separately and in combination. The expected extension of the health span enables us to refocus health care spending on individual prevention, starting in late adulthood, and on the brief period of morbidity at very old age.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84950104927&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1159/000442746
DO - 10.1159/000442746
M3 - Scientific review articles
C2 - 26675034
AN - SCOPUS:84950104927
SN - 0304-324X
VL - 62
SP - 409
EP - 416
JO - Gerontology
JF - Gerontology
IS - 4
ER -