Category Archives: Human Longevity

Beloved by young and old, Nellie the oldest dolphin in human care, has died at age 61, according to her caretakers at Marineland Dolphin Adventure.

We are saddened to announce that Nellie, the oldest Atlantic bottlenose dolphin in human care, has passed away. She lived to the incredible age of 61. Though we are saddened by her loss, her memory will live on in the lives she touched. She fostered a love of the ocean and promoted marine conservation to thousands throughout her lifetime. We will miss her dearly, the marine park announced on its Facebook page about 7 p.m. Thursday.

An Atlantic bottlenose dolphin, Nellie was born on Feb, 27, 1953 at Marineland. She was adopted as Jacksonville Universitys mascot in 1970. Last year, JU awarded Nellie an honorary doctorate degree in health sciences and longevity during her 60th birthday celebration.

Nellie brought such joy to so many, and was an inspiration to generations with her spirit and longevity, said JU President Tim Cost. We are honored to have had her as our mascot, and share our condolences with her caregivers at Marineland and with all those who shared such a special bond with her.

The certificate was Nellies third. The first was when she was proclaimed an honorary JU Dolphin when named its mascot. She then received an honorary masters degree in marine science in 2008.

She was also the oldest living college mascot in the country. A longtime star performer, she jumped through hoops and playfully interacted with trainers and spectators at Marinelands dolphin shows.

Nellies showmanship made her a national celebrity. She appeared in a Timex watch commercial, and a Frank Sinatra special.

She touched the lives of people who walked through the doors of Marineland. She gave them the gift of awareness, education and conservation while paving the way to help protect marine mammals in the worlds oceans. While an unfortunate loss for Marineland Dolphin Adventure and the Georgia Aquarium family, Nellies legacy continues through the memories created and inspiration she left behind, her human colleagues said on the Georgia Aquarium blog.

Teresa Stepzinski: (904) 359-4075

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Nellie the dolphin dies at Marineland Dolphin Adventure

With the news Tuesday night that Fox has canceled the robot cop drama Almost Human after one season, the bubble watch that time of year when underperforming TV shows wait anxiously to hear their fate has officially begun.

As the networks look to pick up new shows for next season, some existing shows will have to go. First-year series that never quite took off and veterans aging gracelessly are both in peril.

While the renewal of some shows is a no-brainer (hello, Scandal), the return of others, such as CBS Hostages, is far from certain. With decisions set to come down in the next week or two, here are our picks for the top 10 bubble shows.

That the Robin Williams comedy was left off the list when CBS renewed 18 shows last monthdoesnt bode well for its future. Its season finale two weeks ago drew less than 6 million viewers, meaning the top-rated network will likely choose to move on.

This 6-year-old drama was likewise left out of the bulk renewal, putting it in danger of being canceled. If that happens, theres a chance it could see a second life on cable Deadline.com reported last week that the studio was shopping the Simon Baker procedural to other networks.

After 15 seasons, SVU still draws an impressively loyal fan base, but that longevity equals a pricey drama that draws only modest ratings. With creator Dick Wolf now having successfully spawned another franchise in Chicago Fire and Chicago PD, NBC could opt to focus his attention there and finally close the book on the L&O franchise.

No bubble list would be complete without this perennially endangered cult comedy. Communitys saving grace for the past five seasons has been that, while its ratings are low, so are those of every other NBC comedy. With both Michael J. Foxs and Sean Hayes series tanking on Thursdays, Community is likely to get halfway to its six seasons and a movie goal.

With fellow Tuesday comedy About a Boy having found a respectable audience, this comedy about a boy with a blind father could see itself getting the ax. But averaging 5.7 million viewers in its last episode is no slouch for NBC depending on how the network feels about its new comedy development, it could squeak out another season.

This multi-camera comedy from Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane was reviled by critics for its one-note jokes and stereotypical characters, and finished out its first season last February without a renewal. Its unlikely even the mighty MacFarlane can save this one from cancellation.

American Idol aint the launch pad it once was, as this Chris Meloni comedy discovered when it premiered last month. Airing after the half-hour results show on Thursdays, Surviving Jack drew just under 4 million viewers last week likely not enough for renewal.

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Going going gone? These TV shows face the ax

2 hours ago Water thick-knee (Burhinus vermiculatus) defending it nest against a monitor lizard. Credit: MPI for Ornithology Seewiesen/ Wolfgang Goymann

(Phys.org) Ageing inevitably occurs both in humans and in other animals. However, life-span varies widely across species. Researchers of the Max Planck Institute for Ornithology in Seewiesen have now found a possible general mechanism explaining differences in longevity. They investigated life history data of nearly 1400 bird species and found that avian life span varies considerably across the entire Earth, and that much of this variation can be explained by the species' body mass and clutch size and by the local diversity of predator species. With their data the researchers were able to confirm a key prediction of the classical evolutionary theory of ageing that had been proposed more than 50 years ago.

It is well-known that organisms vary widely in life-span. Whereas some fish, turtles or even invertebrates can become hundreds of years old, the neon pygmy goby a small fish - reaches ripe old age at only 60 days. In birds, variation in life-span extends from parrots such as the Sulphur-crested cockatoo that can become more than 100 years old, to the small Allen's hummingbird with a maximum life-span of only 4 years, a 25 fold difference. How can this variation be explained?

The classical evolutionary theory of ageing, first proposed by the famous evolutionary biologist George C. Williams over 50 years ago, gives an answer. The theory predicts that high mortality rates in adult animals due to predation, exposure to parasites and other randomly occurring events will be associated with shorter maximum life-spans. This is because under high external mortality most individuals will already be dead (eaten or succumbed to disease) before natural selection can act on rare mutations that cause healthier ageing. The theory has since been further developed and tested in a number of experimental and comparative studies. Yet contradictory results have caused scientists to cast doubt on its validity.

Mihai Valcu and Bart Kempenaers from the Max Planck Institute for Ornithology in Seewiesen together with colleagues from New Zealand and Switzerland have now tested this theory using a comprehensive database on estimates of maximum life-span of 1396 bird species, 1128 from free-living species and 268 from birds kept in captivity. The researchers used a global distribution map of these species, included data on their morphology and reproductive rate, and estimated predation rate.

By means of complex statistical analysis methods they found that in the investigated bird species maximum longevity is negatively related to the number of predator species occurring within the same geographical area. This means that the more predator species are present in the same habitat and the more evenly they are distributed, the lower is the life span of the respective species. This relationship supports the classical theory of ageing, and remains valid when other life history traits known to influence longevity such as body mass and clutch size are included into the statistical model. Indeed, larger species live longer, and those that reproduce fast (lay more eggs) live shorter lives.

Remarkably, the observed pattern showing longer life-spans when fewer predators are present emerges no matter how the analysis was done: at the species level, at a finer regional scale (groups of species within a certain area) or even when comparing entire bioregions. "With our results of a negative relationship between predation pressure and longevity that is largely independent of other key life history traits we were able to confirm the universality of the 50 year old evolutionary theory of ageing on a broad geographical scale" concludes Mihai Valcu, first author of the study. At least in birds, where the necessary data are available for many species, the theory seems to hold.

Explore further: Why do fruit flies live so long?

More information: M. Valcu, J.Dale, M. Griesser, S. Nakagawa, B. Kempenaers. "Global gradients of avian longevity support the classic evolutionary theory of ageing." Ecography, article first published online: 25 April 2014 DOI: 10.1111/ecog.00929

Journal reference: Ecography

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Predators predict longevity of birds

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Newswise SAN DIEGO (April 28, 2014) Zoo-goers may marvel at their bare skin and wrinkles, but scientists are more interested in the long lives of the pale, toothy and nearly hairless rodents known as naked mole rats. With lifespans of up to 31 years, naked mole rats live decades longer than would be expected based on their size. By comparison, mice live at most four years.

A new study links the naked mole rats remarkable lifespan to a molecular chaperone protein known as HSP25. HSP25 and other chaperone proteins act like a tiny quality-control team within an animals cells, quickly eliminating incorrectly manufactured or damaged proteins before they can cause a problem. Researchers say understanding changes in the actions of HSP25 during aging could shed light on age-related diseases like Alzheimers and Parkinsons.

Using a variety of rodents, we found that the amount of HSP25 present in their tissues positively correlated with the animals maximum lifespan, said Karl Rodriguez, Ph.D., a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio who conducted the experiments. If we can understand how HSP25 levels are regulated, what its function is and how it contributes to cell health, we might find ways to use this protein to combat devastating age-related diseases.

The researchers compared HSP25 levels in naked mole rats to levels of the protein found in rodents with different maximum lifespans, from mice (four years) to guinea pigs (12 years) to Damaraland mole rats (20 years) and others in between.

In animals with higher levels of HSP25, having more of these quality-control proteins means they are primed to react when there is a problem, so they can quickly transport the faulty protein to cellular garbage dumps and maintain the health of the cell, said Rodriguez.

Many neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimers, Parkinsons and prion diseases, are caused by defective proteins that are allowed to proliferate and accumulate into dangerous structures called aggregates. Finding ways to safely increase a persons level of HSP27 (the human corollary to HSP25) could potentially help to prevent or treat such diseases, said Rodriguez.

Native to the horn of Africa, naked mole rats live underground in colonies with complex social structures akin to those of ants or bees. In addition to their noted longevity, they are remarkably resistant to cancer.

Naked mole rats also appear to remain spry and healthy even in the final years of their long lives, so they can potentially offer clues not only about longevity but also the overall maintenance of health.

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Naked Mole Rats and the Secret to Longevity

More than 400 mutations were found in the healthy white blood cells of a 115-year-old woman, according to a new study that may advance what is known about limits of the human life span.

Genetic mutations have been linked to diseases such as cancer, but these findings suggest that mutations in white blood cells are largely harmless over a lifetime, the researchers said.

Blood is continually replenished by hematopoietic (meaning "to make blood") stem cells that are inside the bone marrow and divide to produce different types of blood cells.

Cell division can lead to genetic mutations and hundreds of mutations have been found in patients with blood cancers. However, little was known about white blood cells and mutations.

The woman in the study - whose name was not revealed - was the oldest person in the world when she died in 2005. She is thought to be the oldest person ever to donate her body to science. The hundreds of mutations identified in her white blood cells appeared to be tolerated by the body and did not cause disease.

The researchers also found possible new insight into the limits of human longevity, according to the authors of the study published online April 23 in the journal Genome Research.

"To our great surprise we found that, at the time of her death, the peripheral blood was derived from only two active hematopoietic stem cells (in contrast to an estimated 1,300 simultaneously active stem cells), which were related to each other," lead author Dr. Henne Holstege said in a journal news release.

The researchers also found that the woman's white blood cells' telomeres were extremely short. Telomeres, which are at the ends of chromosomes and protect them from damage, get a bit shorter each time a cell divides.

"Because these blood cells had extremely short telomeres, we speculate that most hematopoietic stem cells may have died from 'stem cell exhaustion,' reaching the upper limit of stem cell divisions," Holstege said.

Further research is needed to learn whether such stem cell exhaustion is a cause of death in extremely old people.

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Scientists seek genetic clues to longevity from 115-year-old woman

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Newswise University of Rochester Professor of Biology Vera Gorbunova, whose innovative research on DNA repair and the aging process has been internationally recognized, has been awarded a $9.5 million grant from the National Institute on Aging to study longevity.

Vera Gorbunova will lead a five-year project, which includes colleagues at the University of Rochester, Harvard University and the Albert Einstein College of Medicine, to explore the factors responsible for longevity in various rodent species, with the goal of developing treatments to improve the aging process in people.

Professor Gorbunova has made tremendous strides with her research on the anti-cancer mechanisms of naked mole rats, said University President Joel Seligman. We are extremely proud that she will now build on this groundbreaking work by leading colleagues at Harvard University and the Albert Einstein College of Medicine to advance our understanding of problems associated with aging.

Researchers at the three locations will focus on rodents because they are genetically similar to humans and have a diverse range of lifespans. Mice and rats, for example, typically live two to four years, while naked mole rats, beavers, porcupines, and squirrels have lifespans in excess of 20 years. Naked mole rats, which have been known to live more than 30 years, are of special interest since they remain free of age-related problems and diseaseincluding canceruntil the very end of their lives.

As people age, they are more likely to come down with a variety of diseases, such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, and osteoporosis, said Gorbunova. By working together, researchers at the three institutions will be better equipped to make progress in countering age-related health problems in people.

The work done by Gorbunova and her research partner, biologist Andrei Seluanov, has largely focused on DNA repair and cancer-resistance in naked mole rats in order to better understand the mechanisms responsible for longevity. In papers published last year, they identified HMW-HA (high molecular weight hyaluronan) as the chemical that triggers the anti-cancer response in the naked mole rat and attributed the rodents longevity to a process that results in nearly-perfect protein synthesis.

As Gorbunova points out, the University will serve as an ideal center for the research project, given the advances already made by her lab and its catalog of tissue and cell samples from 18 rodent species.

In addition to her leadership role, Gorbunova will conduct research to identify the factors responsible for more efficient DNA repair in long-lived species. With a better understanding of DNA repair, it may be possible to modulate those factors to delay human aging. Also at the University of Rochester, Andrei Seluanov, an assistant professor of biology, will study the mechanisms of longevity and cancer resistance in naked mole rats.

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Biologist Vera Gorbunova to Lead $9.5 Million Multi-Institution Longevity Research Project

WEDNESDAY, April 23, 2014 (HealthDay News) -- More than 400 mutations were found in the healthy white blood cells of a 115-year-old woman, according to a new study that may advance what is known about limits of the human life span.

Genetic mutations have been linked to diseases such as cancer, but these findings suggest that mutations in white blood cells are largely harmless over a lifetime, the researchers said.

Blood is continually replenished by hematopoietic (meaning "to make blood") stem cells that are inside the bone marrow and divide to produce different types of blood cells.

Cell division can lead to genetic mutations and hundreds of mutations have been found in patients with blood cancers. However, little was known about white blood cells and mutations.

The woman in the study was the oldest person in the world when she died in 2005. She is thought to be the oldest person ever to donate her body to science. The hundreds of mutations identified in her white blood cells appeared to be tolerated by the body and did not cause disease.

The researchers also found possible new insight into the limits of human longevity, according to the authors of the study published online April 23 in the journal Genome Research.

"To our great surprise we found that, at the time of her death, the peripheral blood was derived from only two active hematopoietic stem cells (in contrast to an estimated 1,300 simultaneously active stem cells), which were related to each other," lead author Dr. Henne Holstege said in a journal news release.

The researchers also found that the woman's white blood cells' telomeres were extremely short. Telomeres, which are at the ends of chromosomes and protect them from damage, get a bit shorter each time a cell divides.

"Because these blood cells had extremely short telomeres, we speculate that most hematopoietic stem cells may have died from 'stem cell exhaustion,' reaching the upper limit of stem cell divisions," Holstege said.

Further research is needed to learn whether such stem cell exhaustion is a cause of death in extremely old people.

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Scientists study gene clues from 115-year-old woman

The devil is in the detail is a clich that happens to be true, but lets turn it around: The magic is in the detail. What constitutes quality in a product, besides the raw materials you choose? The attention paid to detail.

Look at a knock-off Gucci handbag and consider its original counterpart: The difference, besides the leather chosen, is in the stitching, the inside lining, the zippers, and so on. In short, quality resides in the hidden details that aren't obvious to most--until you touch the product and look at it up close. It's craftsmanship that gives luxury fashion brands longevity and which lets them weather trends.

Brands are no different from the products and services that they represent. Frantically searching for the one Unique Positioning Statement (UPS) or logo design that is going to simultaneously sum up precisely what your company stands for and differentiate it from the rest of the pack is in some ways a meaningless battle. Taglines may be catchy, but they don't, in the end, make people buy products. What determines whether a woman buys Chanel No. 5 or Issey Miyake's L'Eau d'Issey Florale? Not taglines but how either smells on her skin.

What makes you so special?

What makes your brand unique and better than the competition is the compounded totality of many little things. That means you cant just consider the attention given to producing an outstanding service or product--you also have to think about how the sales force and support team treats its customers and how the receptionist answers the phone.

The Jawbone UP24 fitness tracking device is a good example. After diligently tracking my sleep, workout regime, and diet, I became properly addicted to the wristband and to its accompanying iOS app. When the band suddenly stopped working, after three months, I flew into a minor panic. All my data (and exercise momentum) would be lost, I worried. But Jawbone turned out to have an excellent support system. They troubleshot the problem with me seamlessly, on email and over the phone. They used human beings, not robots. I followed the progress of my issue via a concise thread on their support ticketing system. After they quickly exhausted all possible solutions and saw that the device was still malfunctioning, they shipped me a replacement band immediately. I became loyal to the brand thanks to the humane and efficient treatment I received. The extra attention taken by Jawbone to make sure that their staff was professional and courteous--while making sure that I never got lost in a maze of telephone drones or automated emails--made a huge difference.

Keep the details invisible.

Its the combination of myriad details that shapes brand image in the minds of customers. These details may be transmitted subconsciously. Not everyone recognizes that hand stitching makes a serious difference. Expertly executed details, imperceptible to most, should create a sense of magic and wonder. Think of an upmarket German car, such as an Audi, BMW or Mercedes. When you are at the BMW showroom and you step into, say, a 5 Series model, the satisfyingly clean thumpf sound that the door makes as you shut it signifies quality. Theres no rattling, no sound of sheet metal being slammed, just that confidence-inspiring, compact sound. Its the sound of outside noise and discomfort being sealed off while you enter a safe, comfortable place. Behind the steering wheel are carefully wrought details, too: the smell, the way the seat feels, the feel of your hands on the steering wheel, the way the dashboard buttons have a certain resistance, and so on.

For those who remember, think about the perfect resistance and muted click of the Hewlett-Packard scientific calculator buttons, compared to their competitors Casio and Texas Instruments. The latter two companies clearly hadnt spent a lot of energy thinking about what it would feel like to press down the keys. And it made a difference.

Advertising and branding should be thought of in the same way. Yes, the big idea is important, but success hinges on its execution, consistency, and attention to each and every word. Do define the brand with succinct messaging, but also trust that consumers will recognize the collective positive attributes of the brand rather than just its tagline. Make sure your communications are well crafted and recognizable. All touch points need to be carefully considered, down to every HTML email campaign.

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Great Branding Is Invisible

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine report that older women, plucky individuals and those who have suffered a recent major loss are more likely to be compassionate toward strangers than other older adults.

The study is published in this months issue of the International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry.

Because compassionate behaviors are associated with better health and well-being as we age, the research findings offer insights into ways to improve the outcomes of individuals whose deficits in compassion put them at risk for becoming lonely and isolated later in life.

We are interested in anything that can help older people age more successfully, said Lisa Eyler, PhD, a professor of psychiatry and co-author. We know that social connections are important to health and well-being, and we know that people who want to be kind to others garner greater social support. If we can foster compassion in people, we can improve their health and well-being, and maybe even longevity.

The study, based on a survey of 1,006 randomly selected adults in San Diego County, aged 50 and over, with a mean age of 77, identified three factors that were predictive of a persons self-reported compassion: gender, recent suffering and high mental resiliency.

Women, independent of their age, income, education, race, marital status or mental health status, scored higher on the compassion test, on average, than men. Higher levels of compassion were also observed among both men and women who had walked a mile in another persons shoes and experienced a personal loss, such as a death in the family or illness, in the last year.

Those who reported higher confidence in their ability to bounce back from hard times also reported more empathy toward strangers and joy from helping those in need.

What is exciting is that we are identifying aspects of successful aging that we can foster in both men and women, said co-author Dilip Jeste, MD, Distinguished Professor of Psychiatry and Neurosciences, and director of the Sam and Rose Stein Institute for Research on Aging. Mental resiliency can be developed through meditation, mindfulness and stress reduction practices. We can also teach people that the silver lining to adversity is an opportunity for personal growth.

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The above story is based on materials provided by University of California, San Diego Health Sciences. Note: Materials may be edited for content and length.

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The ilk of human kindness: Older women with gumption score high on compassion

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17-Apr-2014

Contact: Scott Lafee slafee@ucsd.edu 619-543-6163 University of California - San Diego

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine report that older women, plucky individuals and those who have suffered a recent major loss are more likely to be compassionate toward strangers than other older adults.

The study is published in this month's issue of the International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry.

Because compassionate behaviors are associated with better health and well-being as we age, the research findings offer insights into ways to improve the outcomes of individuals whose deficits in compassion put them at risk for becoming lonely and isolated later in life.

"We are interested in anything that can help older people age more successfully," said Lisa Eyler, PhD, a professor of psychiatry and co-author. "We know that social connections are important to health and well-being, and we know that people who want to be kind to others garner greater social support. If we can foster compassion in people, we can improve their health and well-being, and maybe even longevity."

The study, based on a survey of 1,006 randomly selected adults in San Diego County, aged 50 and over, with a mean age of 77, identified three factors that were predictive of a person's self-reported compassion: gender, recent suffering and high mental resiliency.

Women, independent of their age, income, education, race, marital status or mental health status, scored higher on the compassion test, on average, than men. Higher levels of compassion were also observed among both men and women who had "walked a mile in another person's shoes" and experienced a personal loss, such as a death in the family or illness, in the last year.

Those who reported higher confidence in their ability to bounce back from hard times also reported more empathy toward strangers and joy from helping those in need.

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The ilk of human kindness