راز پیری انسان: بینش‌های شگفت‌انگیز از علمی که هنوز جوان است

How can we turn back the clock? Health food, gyms and cosmetic companies promise us everlasting youth, but the effects of aging are caused by complex biological processes at the level of the cell. The author shows what we can do to protect ourselves and what exciting breakthroughs scientists are still working on, and he asks which industries benefit by peddling dubious information and dubious remedies. He also looks at why we are so keen to deny that we are aging, when indeed, aging is a part of life - for everything from bacteria to humans. Table of Contents Foreword Why should I read a book about aging now? I. Why do we age? A question as old as humankind I.1. What is aging? I.2. Aging and death in the earliest written testimonies I.3. The origin of aging and the building blocks of life I.4. Aging is an ancient property of life I.5. The body ages, the germ line lives on I.6. Aging plays no role in evolution I.7. Tracking down what makes aging inevitable II. Genes Control Aging II.1. Longevity through genes II.2. The first genetic mechanisms of longevity II.3. Genetic defects, growth hormones and their importance for aging — in mice and humans III. The process of human aging III.1. Premature aging: When children are already aged III.2. How cells react to DNA damage: checkpoints and cancer III.3 DNA repair: between aging and cancer development III.4 DNA damage causes cancer III.5 The dangers of the sun’s rays and the “Moon Children” phenomenon III.6. DNA damage responses in aging III.7. Dementia: When our nerves are old IV. Proteins, molecules and cells in old age IV.1. Proteins: building, transporting, destroying IV.2. Stay hungry to live long: caloric restriction IV.3. Mitochondria: the power plants of the cell IV.4. The life of grace of molecules IV.5. The telomeres: protective caps of chromosomes and aging IV.6. Molecules are damaged, the body responds IV.7. Aging and reproduction IV.8. Female Strength: Women Live Longer Than Men V. The Environment of Aging V.1. Lifestyle and life expectancy V.2. Nutrition and Aging V.3. When poison does us good: Hormesis V.4. Superficial Treatments for Superficial Aging: Anti-Aging Cosmetics VI. Is There a Cure for Aging? VI.1. Meteoric advances in modern medicine VI.2. Disease prevention and therapy VI.3. Cancer therapy: From a death sentence to a chronic disease VI.4. The requirements for anti-aging treatments VI.5. Treatment Approaches for Age-Related Dementia VI.6. Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine VI.7. The magic pill VII. The Outlook: The Future of the Aging Society Endnotes Index