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Why scientists must look beyond biology to discover the fountain of youth

March 22, 2021

Recent studies have shown the importance of including behavioral and social science while studying biological mechanisms in order to slow down the rate of biological aging.
Through a series of three new published papers, the study attempts to find the intersection of social and biological factors, and the exact role they play in biological aging research.
The inclusion of behavioral and social research could be the key to understanding the translation of geroscience findings from animal models to that of human beings.

A series of three papers have recently been published in the Journal, Aging Research Reviews, that highlight the importance of incorporating behavioral and social factors in the study of biological aging. For years, geroscience—the study that deals with reducing the rate of biological aging in order to improve healthspan and longevity—has neglected the incorporation of social science and behavioral research in its findings. But all this could change: The three new papers in question were written by pioneers in the field of aging research, who also happen to be members of the National Academy of Medicine. The aim of the study was to determine the intersection of social and biological factors; which could then play a critical role in cracking the code of healthy aging throughout our lifespan. The problem today is that exciting biological discoveries on the rate of aging majorly occur in non-human species, and are—at times—not applicable to humans; thereby defeating the purpose of the discovery altogether. The inclusion of behavioral and social research could be the key to upgrading the translation of geroscience findings from animal models to that of human beings, thereby extending these innumerable benefits. “The move from slowing fundamental processes of aging in laboratory animals to slowing aging in humans will not be as simple as prescribing a pill and watching it work. Compared to aging in laboratory animals, human aging has many behavioral or social in addition to cellular origins and influences. These influences include potential intervention targets that are uniquely human, and therefore are not easily investigated in animal research,” says Terrie Moffitt, the Nannerl O. Keohane University Professor of Psychology and Neuroscience at Duke University. Many of these human factors have massive impacts on mortality, health, early life adversity, stress, intelligence, loneliness, personality traits, psychiatric history, life purpose, and social connection; which are all tied to a number of late-life health outcomes. These critical factors need to be taken into account when working towards a meaningful prediction of human biological aging. “Geroscience can be augmented through collaboration with behavioral and social science to accomplish translation from animal models to humans, and improve the design of clinical trials of anti-aging therapies. It’s vital that geroscience advances be delivered to everyone, not just the well-to-do, because individuals who experience low education, low incomes, adverse early-life experiences, and prejudice are the people who age fastest and die youngest,” says Moffit. Social factors of aging can play as massive predictors of age-related health outcomes, even more so when it comes to influencing biological factors. In fact, there are five different facets of social and behavioral factors that can translate to premature aging. Known as ‘social hallmarks’ of aging, they include:

Low lifetime socioeconomic status, including lower levels of education
Adversity in childhood and adulthood, including trauma and other hardships
Being a member of a minority group
Adverse health behaviors, such as smoking, obesity and problem drinking
Adverse psychological states, such as depression, negative psychological outlook and chronic stress

The presence of these five factors are strongly linked to older adults who struggle with activities of daily living, issues with cognition, and being riddled with five or more diseases. As such, we cannot conclusively state that biological and social factors are completely independent from each other. This is why Eileen Crimmins—USC University Professor and AARP Chair in Gerontology—advocates for further incorporation of social and behavioral factors in the study of aging biology research. “Our hypothesis is that if we could fully capture the basic biological mechanisms of aging, they would even more strongly explain the social variability in the process of aging, as social factors need to ‘get under the skin’ through biology,” says Crimmins. For example, professor Elissa Epel—vice chair in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science at UC San Francisco—detailed how research on stress and resilience needs to incorporate psychosocial factors in order to determine how different types of stress affects how we age. Because not all types of stress are equal. In fact, the social hallmarks of aging can shape the rate of aging in part through toxic stress responses. While acute responses to minor or moderate stressors—such as response to injury or infection—are critical for survival, chronic exposure to high amounts of stress—such as long term psychological abuse—can result in poor health outcomes. In fact, low-dose stressors can lead to positive biological responses, improving resistance and resilience through a process known as hormesis. Instances of hormetic stressors include short-term exposure to heat, cold, or exercise which can induce cell repair and even rejuvenation. Nevertheless, chronic exposure to such factors— known as toxic stress— can override these mechanisms, resulting in severe damage, or even death. Therefore, while hormetic stress slows down aging, toxic stress accelerates the biological aging process. The timing, types, and frequency of hormetic stress need to be analyzed further in order to ensure they prove useful in human aging research and interventions. Stress resilience can also include social interventions that protect from the social hallmarks of aging; including creating safer neighborhoods to minimize violence and trauma; and creation of social support programs to combat depression and loneliness. Now more than ever, geroscience has become extremely important not only for our global aging demographic, but also to combat any health challenges going forward. We are currently living in an era where global temperatures have increased exponentially, leading to wildfires and small-particle pollution. The emergence of new and more dangerous zoonotic viruses have not made things any easier. The reduction of social inequities, improving stress resilience, and boosting global immune functioning have now more than ever become critical public health goals. In sum, the analysis of these three papers highlight a promising avenue of aging research going forward. As complex social animals, we humans age together in response to behavioral factors and social conditions, which can be altered. Perhaps this could push us in the right direction to discovering the fountain of youth that we’ve been searching for all along!

References: https://medicalxpress.com/news/2021-02-breakthroughs-aging-scientists-biology.html

Why scientists must look beyond biology to discover the fountain of youth

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