Written by Dr Handan Melike Dönertaş of the Leibniz Institute on Aging – Fritz Lipmann Institute (FLI) and Professor Dame Linda Partridge of UCL, the paper brings together evolutionary theory, comparative genomics and molecular biology to explain why ageing evolves and why it varies so widely across species.
The authors describe how natural selection weakens during adulthood, creating a “selection shadow” that allows late-acting harmful mutations to persist. They also highlight the strong conservation of key pathways that influence lifespan, including insulin and IGF-1 signalling, mTOR and stress-response networks, which help explain why ageing processes are shared across much of the tree of life.
Professor Dame Linda Partridge, Founding Director of the Max Planck Institute for Biology of Ageing and Honorary Professor at UCL, said: “Understanding why ageing evolves, and why it differs so dramatically across species, gives us a powerful framework for identifying the mechanisms that shape health in later life. Evolutionary genetics is helping us see ageing not as an inevitable decline, but as a process we can understand and ultimately influence.”
The Review also outlines how advances in large-scale human genetics and multi-omics biomarkers are transforming the field and how evolutionary insights can guide future strategies to improve healthspan. Together, these findings contribute to the growing global conversation on the biology and evolution of ageing, and highlight the strength of collaboration between UCL and international partners such as the FLI.
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