Partridge Linda, Gems David
Centre for Research on Ageing, Department of Biology, University College London, Darwin Building, Gower Street, London WC1E 6BT, UK.
Trends Ecol Evol. 2006 Jun;21(6):334-40. doi: 10.1016/j.tree.2006.02.008. Epub 2006 Mar 10.
By the mid 1970s, the mechanisms by which ageing can evolve had a secure theoretical basis in population genetics. Here, we discuss how subsequent evolutionary work has focussed on testing and extending this theory, and on attempting to integrate it with other emerging facets of the biology of ageing, such as genetic studies of long-lived mutants and of phenotypic plasticity in ageing, such as in response to nutritional status. We also describe how functional genomic studies are providing new insights into the evolutionary forces shaping genome evolution and lifespan control. Future challenges include understanding the biochemistry of longevity and how its failure generates ageing and associated diseases, and the determination of the genetic basis of lifespan evolution and the great plasticity that it displays.
到20世纪70年代中期，衰老能够进化的机制在群体遗传学中有了坚实的理论基础。在此，我们讨论后续的进化研究如何集中于检验和扩展这一理论，以及尝试将其与衰老生物学的其他新出现的方面相结合，比如对长寿突变体的遗传学研究以及衰老过程中表型可塑性的研究，例如对营养状况的反应。我们还描述了功能基因组学研究如何为塑造基因组进化和寿命控制的进化力量提供新的见解。未来的挑战包括理解长寿的生物化学机制以及其失效如何导致衰老和相关疾病，以及确定寿命进化的遗传基础及其所表现出的巨大可塑性。
