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Change and aging senescence as an adaptation.
1GRIFE-Escola de Artes, Ciências e Humanidades, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil. amartins@ups.br
Plos One
|September 28, 2011
Summary
Aging, or senescence, is a puzzle in evolutionary biology. A new model suggests aging benefits lineages by helping them adapt to changing environments, even though it harms individuals.
Area of Science:
- Evolutionary biology
- Gerontology
- Population genetics
Background:
- Aging (senescence) is detrimental to individuals, yet common across species.
- Evolutionary forces typically favor traits that enhance survival and reproduction.
- The persistence of aging presents a paradox in evolutionary theory.
Purpose of the Study:
- To propose a novel evolutionary model explaining the persistence of aging.
- To reconcile the individual cost of senescence with potential lineage-level benefits.
- To investigate the role of environmental change and mutation in aging.
Main Methods:
- Development of a theoretical model for aging.
- Incorporation of evolutionary assumptions: individual competition, parent-offspring interactions, and non-stationary optimal conditions.
- Consideration of mutation and its role in adaptation.
Main Results:
- Senescence can provide a lineage-level advantage in changing environments.
- Aging facilitates faster adaptation by removing less-adapted older individuals.
- Lineage selection, rather than individual selection, may explain aging's persistence.
Conclusions:
- Aging is proposed as an adaptive strategy for lineages in dynamic environments.
- Environmental change and mutation are key drivers favoring senescence.
- Senescence allows species to adapt more rapidly to evolving conditions.
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