http://schoolofmedicine.orlyowl.net Health Information Wed, 28 Oct 2009 05:31:07 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en The trend in human longevity is upward, but how much of that is due to unintended slowing of the aging process via general advances in medicine and better treatment of the diseases of aging? A paper: "The distinction between senescent and non-senescent mortality proves to be very valuable for describing ... http://schoolofmedicine.orlyowl.net/3188-an-examination-of-the-longevity-trend.html This seems potentially important: "Despite a 30-year lifespan that gives ample time for cells to grow cancerous, a small rodent species called a naked mole rat has never been found with tumors of any kind - and now [biologists] think they know why. ... the mole rat's cells express a ... http://schoolofmedicine.orlyowl.net/3189-mechanisms-of-naked-mole-rat-cancer-immunity.html Opinions from a bioethicist on how researchers should present the case for longevity science in order to maximize fundraising and public support: "The medical sciences are currently dominated by the 'disease-model' approach to health extension, an approach that prioritizes the study of pathological mechanisms with the goal of discovering treatment ... http://schoolofmedicine.orlyowl.net/3190-on-presenting-the-case-for-longevity-science.html Progress continues in the development of biochemically active scaffolding to sculpt and guide tissue regeneration: here, ScienceDaily looks at a scaffold "made from soluble fibers, which may help humans replace lost or missing bone. With more research, [it] could also serve as the basic technology for regenerating other types of ... http://schoolofmedicine.orlyowl.net/3191-a-look-at-the-state-of-tissue-scaffolding.html A look at some scientific studies of the present bounds of human longevity from Courant: "It's becoming clear that people who break through the 90-plus barrier represent a physical elite, markedly different from the elderly who typically die younger than them. Far from gaining a longer burden of disability, their ... http://schoolofmedicine.orlyowl.net/3192-the-study-of-centenarians-and-supercentenarians.html