longevity

We all measure our age in years, but results of a study lead by researchers at Kings College in London found what may be a better measurement of age –...

Robin Smith, Health Content Scientist Barring injury, disease or capture, some scientists believe that a lobster could live virtually forever. They are amongst a select group of animals, including tortoises,...

On her 105th birthday, Dominguita Velasco danced so long that her worried family asked her to sit down. When she turned 111, she had a party with friends and family...

Last month we wrote about the challenging search for genetic influences on human longevity, touching on two of the most recent studies as examples of how elusive solid findings have been. Here, we review the latest genetic findings on longevity and conduct follow-up analyses in the 23andMe database. What we found indicates there's still a long way to go in defining a predictive genetic model for longevity.

Early explorers searched the globe for the mythical “fountain of youth,” and now scientists are turning that exploration inward to look at the genomes of people who’ve lived especially long lives. But studies on the genetic and non-genetic factors impacting longevity have turned up mixed results, and the latest studies looking at the genetic factors lead to more questions than answers.

Last summer, a study published in the journal Science on the genetics of human longevity made a splash when the authors claimed that they had identified a genetic signature that...

[Update: This study was formally retracted by Science on July 22, 2011] A genome-wide association study of extreme longevity published last week in the journal Science has been receiving a...

From alchemists and the Philosopher’s Stone to Ponce de Leon and the Fountain of Youth, history is full of stories of people searching for a way to extend life indefinitely....

Even if you do everything right — exercise, healthy eating, no smoking– whether or not you’ll make it to the century mark depends to some extent on your genes. One...