May 4: Turning Back the Clock: The Science of Staying Young

Time: 6:30 p.m., Wednesday, May 6th

Speaker: Alex Plesa

Aging is the major risk factor for multiple human disorders such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, and neurodegeneration, accounting for approximately 90% of deaths in developed nations. With the global population experiencing an unprecedented growth in the proportion of older individuals, aging is becoming an increasingly significant public health concern due to the associated healthcare costs. Considering the negative social and economic aspects of age-related diseases, there is an increasing need for developing age reversal therapies that can improve human health. This lecture will consist of three sections: “what is aging?”, “can we reverse aging?”, “how to live healthier for longer?”. The first section will give a broad definition of aging by summarizing how cells function and how they become dysfunctional with age. The second section will address the reversibility of aging by presenting experiments that demonstrate that aging can be reversed and current approaches to developing new anti-aging interventions. Lastly, the lecture will discuss current practices to increase human healthspan through lifestyle and dietary interventions, as well as the future of age reversal medicine.