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Updated: Aug 15, 2026

Studying the Hypothalamic Insulin Signal to Peripheral Glucose Intolerance with a Continuous Drug Infusion System into the Mouse Brain
Published on: January 4, 2018
The insulin/IGF-1 signaling in mammals and its relevance to human longevity
Marielisa Rincon1, Eric Rudin, Nir Barzilai
1Division of Endocrinology, and Pediatrics, Department of Medicine, Institute for Aging Research, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Belfer Bldg. #701, 1300 Morris Park Avenue, Bronx, 10461 NY, USA.
Abstract:
Hormones, like insulin and insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1), are thought to be deeply involved with longevity. Lower species have been the source for most of our current knowledge on the role of the insulin/IGF-1 signaling in modulating lifespan. This hormonal system may have originated from a very early common ancestor and is involved in many functions that are necessary for metabolism, growth, and fertility in animal models like flies, nematodes and mammalians. Disruption of the insulin/IGF-1 receptor in nematodes and flies increases lifespan significantly. With evolution, mammals developed two well characterized hormonal systems: insulin and growth hormone (GH)/IGF-1, with different metabolic and developmental functions. Abnormalities in the insulin signaling pathway generate age-related diseases and increased mortality, whereas the GH/IGF-1 axis could potentially modulate longevity in many species. In this review we briefly describe the lifespan regulatory role of the insulin/IGF-1 signaling of nematodes, flies and rodent models and compare it with the human equivalent.
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