Human Ageing: A Unique Experience

All species, including humans, have a characteristic ageing trajectory and lifespan. These species-specific patterns appear to be rooted in evolved developmental programs. The ageing program, at the level of the individual human, shows considerable plasticity as evidenced by marked variation in ageing across humans. Each human has a unique ageing phenotype and this uniqueness is the result of gene-environment interactions as well as the influence of stochastic events. The most significant interaction is that between culture and the genome and gene-culture co-evolution is the primary driver of human evolution. This book explores the biology of human ageing and the genomic and environmental factors that explain each human’s unique ageing phenotype. This uniqueness has profound implications for both the disease concept and the notion of personalized medicine.

More information about Human Ageing: A Unique Experience by Prof Michael A Singer of Queen’s University, Canada can be found here