Role of the Maillard reaction in aging and age-related diseases. Studies at the cellular-molecular level.

Increase in life expectancy concerns most populations but more importantly developed countries. This increase is accompanied by the shift of chronic diseases to the senior population, especially cardiovascular diseases and diabetes type II. Aging mechanisms, mostly post-genetic, comprise among others the Maillard reaction which strongly contributes by several harmful processes to the age-dependent decline of tissue structure and function. Several of these mechanisms were studied in our laboratory at the cellular-molecular level and will be described in this review with respect to their role in aging and age-related pathologies, especially cardiovascular diseases.