Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Menopause01:28

Menopause

3.5K
Menopause, a natural biological process marking the end of a woman's fertility, typically occurs between the fifth and sixth decade of life. This phase is characterized by the exhaustion of the ovarian follicle pool, leading to less responsive ovaries despite the high levels of Follicle Stimulating Hormone (FSH) and Luteinizing Hormone (LH). The consequential decrease in estrogen production results in symptoms like hot flashes, heavy sweating, headaches, hair loss, muscle pains, vaginal...
3.5K
Natural Selection and Mating Preferences01:06

Natural Selection and Mating Preferences

368
The principle of natural selection posits that organisms better adapted to their environment are more likely to survive and reproduce. This principle is closely intertwined with mating preferences, a key aspect of sexual selection, which evolutionary psychologists believe is driven by instincts to propagate one's genes. Such instincts significantly influence mating behaviors and preferences between genders.
Females, due to their biological roles in conception, pregnancy, and nursing,...
368
Oogenesis02:07

Oogenesis

68.6K
In human women, oogenesis produces one mature egg cell or ovum for every precursor cell that enters meiosis. This process differs in two unique ways from the equivalent procedure of spermatogenesis in males. First, meiotic divisions during oogenesis are asymmetric, meaning that a large oocyte (containing most of the cytoplasm) and minor polar body are produced as a result of meiosis I, and again following meiosis II. Since only oocytes will go on to form embryos if fertilized, this unequal...
68.6K
Longitudinal Research02:20

Longitudinal Research

13.0K
Sometimes we want to see how people change over time, as in studies of human development and lifespan. When we test the same group of individuals repeatedly over an extended period of time, we are conducting longitudinal research. Longitudinal research is a research design in which data-gathering is administered repeatedly over an extended period of time. For example, we may survey a group of individuals about their dietary habits at age 20, retest them a decade later at age 30, and then again...
13.0K
Bone Disorders01:29

Bone Disorders

5.0K
Aging and its effect on bone remodeling is the most common cause of bone disorders. In young and healthy people, bone deposition and resorption happen at an equal rate to maintain optimal bone health.
Bone deposition is also affected by the levels of sex hormones like estrogen and testosterone that promote osteoblast activity and bone matrix synthesis. When the level of these hormones decreases due to aging, it causes a reduction in bone deposition. As a result, bone resorption by osteoclasts...
5.0K
Nondisjunction01:21

Nondisjunction

4.6K
Nondisjunction is the failure of homologous chromosomes or sister chromatids to separate correctly and move to the opposite poles of the cells. This produces daughter cells with abnormal chromosome numbers.  Nondisjunction is common during anaphase I or anaphase II of meiosis.  Mutations in synaptonemal complex proteins that attach homologous chromosomes increase the chances of nondisjunction in anaphase I of meiosis I. In contrast, mutations in topoisomerases and condensins that hold...
4.6K

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Oxygen-dependent modulation of the human complement system during acute normobaric hypoxia: a translational plasma proteomics study.

Clinical and experimental medicine·2026
Same author

Optimal density of bacterial cells.

PLoS computational biology·2023
Same author

Growth-mediated negative feedback shapes quantitative antibiotic response.

Molecular systems biology·2022
Same author

Cellular export of sugars and amino acids: role in feeding other cells and organisms.

Plant physiology·2021
Same author

A coarse-graining, ultrametric approach to resolve the phylogeny of prokaryotic strains with frequent homologous recombination.

BMC evolutionary biology·2020

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Dec 18, 2025

Orthotopic Ovarian Transplantation Procedures to Investigate the Life- and Health-span Influence of Ovarian Senescence in Female Mice
06:49

Orthotopic Ovarian Transplantation Procedures to Investigate the Life- and Health-span Influence of Ovarian Senescence in Female Mice

Published on: February 12, 2018

11.3K

On age-specific selection and extensive lifespan beyond menopause.

Tin Yau Pang1

  • 1Computational Cell Biology Group, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, 25.02 02.33, Universitätsstr 1, Düsseldorf 40225, Germany.

Royal Society Open Science
|June 16, 2020
PubMed
Summary

Investment in descendants can explain prolonged post-reproductive lifespan (PPRLS) in females. This strategy may relax selection on late-life survival and reproduction, driving PPRLS evolution.

Keywords:
ageingkin selectionmenopausepopulation genetics

More Related Videos

Cell-Specific Paired Interrogation of the Mouse Ovarian Epigenome and Transcriptome
12:25

Cell-Specific Paired Interrogation of the Mouse Ovarian Epigenome and Transcriptome

Published on: February 24, 2023

1.2K
Surveying Low-Cost Methods to Measure Lifespan and Healthspan in Caenorhabditis elegans
10:08

Surveying Low-Cost Methods to Measure Lifespan and Healthspan in Caenorhabditis elegans

Published on: May 18, 2022

3.9K

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Dec 18, 2025

Orthotopic Ovarian Transplantation Procedures to Investigate the Life- and Health-span Influence of Ovarian Senescence in Female Mice
06:49

Orthotopic Ovarian Transplantation Procedures to Investigate the Life- and Health-span Influence of Ovarian Senescence in Female Mice

Published on: February 12, 2018

11.3K
Cell-Specific Paired Interrogation of the Mouse Ovarian Epigenome and Transcriptome
12:25

Cell-Specific Paired Interrogation of the Mouse Ovarian Epigenome and Transcriptome

Published on: February 24, 2023

1.2K
Surveying Low-Cost Methods to Measure Lifespan and Healthspan in Caenorhabditis elegans
10:08

Surveying Low-Cost Methods to Measure Lifespan and Healthspan in Caenorhabditis elegans

Published on: May 18, 2022

3.9K

Area of Science:

  • Evolutionary biology
  • Gerontology
  • Behavioral ecology

Background:

  • Standard evolutionary theory predicts weaker selection on genes for later life stages.
  • Prolonged post-reproductive lifespan (PPRLS) is rare and its evolutionary origins are debated.
  • Hypotheses suggest PPRLS evolved through investment in descendants (e.g., grandmother hypothesis).

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate how different investment strategies influence purifying selection on survival and reproduction in later life stages.
  • To examine the potential for adaptive evolution of PPRLS through age-specific selection.

Main Methods:

  • Agent-based modeling was used to simulate evolutionary dynamics.
  • The model incorporated age-specific selection pressures.
  • Simulations tested various female investment strategies in late life stages.

Main Results:

  • Investment strategies allowing continued contribution to descendants at later life stages were simulated.
  • These strategies led to differential relaxation of purifying selection on survival and reproduction.
  • The findings suggest a mechanism for the adaptive evolution of PPRLS.

Conclusions:

  • Female investment in descendants can drive the evolution of prolonged post-reproductive lifespan.
  • Relaxation of selection on late-life traits is a key factor in PPRLS evolution.
  • Agent-based modeling provides insights into the evolutionary pressures shaping lifespan.