What do you think?
Rate this book
Aging of the Genome: The Dual Role of DNA in Life and Death
Aging has long since been ascribed to the gradual accumulation of DNA mutations in the genome of somatic cells. However, it is only recently that the necessary sophisticated technology has been developed to begin testing this theory and its consequences. Vijg critically reviews the concept of genomic instability as a possible universal cause of aging in the context of a new, holistic understanding of genome functioning in complex organisms resulting from recent advances in functional genomics and systems biology. It provides an up-to-date synthesis of current research, as well as a look ahead to the design of strategies to retard or reverse the deleterious effects of aging. This is particularly important in a time when we are urgently trying to unravel the genetic component of aging-related diseases. Moreover, there is a growing public recognition of the imperative of understanding more about the underlying biology of aging, driven by continuing demographic change.
386 pages, Paperback
First published March 29, 2007
17 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 of 1 review
November 30, 2018
Comprehensive, yet concise.
I believe a disclaimer is in order: This is not a pop-sci book, and as such, the readers should be sufficiently literate in cell biology (esp. genetics) to get the most out of it.
Biology will perhaps always be a messy discipline, in the sense that there are just too many variables and too many confounding factors. Study of aging is no different. Researchers have tried to understand it from many different points of view, and we have a wealth of data at our disposal. The trouble is how to make sense of this data. Over the last few decades, the focus has been on genomic aspects of aging, in the hopes that we can finally formulate an overarching theory that would unify - or at least, hold together - many different lines of evidence.
This book is a summary of our current understanding with regards to the genomic basis of aging. Prof. Vizg has expanded upon the theoretical as well as practical aspects (as in how we extrapolate the data obtained from animal models to humans). He has also candidly discussed the limitations as well as pitfalls of the current approaches towards the study of aging.
All in all: Engaging, lucid, thorough, and optimistic.
Final rating: 4.5/5
I believe a disclaimer is in order: This is not a pop-sci book, and as such, the readers should be sufficiently literate in cell biology (esp. genetics) to get the most out of it.
Biology will perhaps always be a messy discipline, in the sense that there are just too many variables and too many confounding factors. Study of aging is no different. Researchers have tried to understand it from many different points of view, and we have a wealth of data at our disposal. The trouble is how to make sense of this data. Over the last few decades, the focus has been on genomic aspects of aging, in the hopes that we can finally formulate an overarching theory that would unify - or at least, hold together - many different lines of evidence.
This book is a summary of our current understanding with regards to the genomic basis of aging. Prof. Vizg has expanded upon the theoretical as well as practical aspects (as in how we extrapolate the data obtained from animal models to humans). He has also candidly discussed the limitations as well as pitfalls of the current approaches towards the study of aging.
All in all: Engaging, lucid, thorough, and optimistic.
Final rating: 4.5/5
Displaying 1 of 1 review