Aging is inevitable: the opinion of pessimists
Mathematicians believe they have proved the inevitability of aging
Anna Kerman, XX2 century, based on the materials of Physorg: It's mathematically impossible to beat aging, scientists say
Aging is a natural part of life, but this fact does not stop scientists trying to find a way to stop the aging process or even reverse it.
But, unfortunately, it may be that all these attempts are doomed to failure. This conclusion was reached by researchers from The University of Arizona, who mathematically proved that it is simply impossible to defeat the aging process in a multicellular organism (including a human one).
"Aging is mathematically inevitable – well, it's true, it's inevitable. Logically, theoretically and mathematically, we come to the conclusion that there is no way to solve this problem," says Joanna Masel, professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of Arizona.
Human aging, like the aging of other organisms, is a biological process of gradual degradation of parts and systems of the human body and the consequences of this process. While the physiology of the aging process is similar to the physiology of aging in other mammals, some aspects of this process, for example, loss of mental abilities, are of greater importance to humans. In addition, psychological, social and economic effects are of great importance.
Maslov and her colleagues at the university published the results of their work in an article entitled "Intercellular Competition and the Inevitability of Multicellular Aging" (Intercellular Competition and the Inevitability of Multicellular Aging), published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences(PNAS).
Modern understanding of the evolution of aging suggests that aging can be stopped if science manages to discover the secret of the "ideal choice". One of the possible ways to achieve this goal is as follows: using competition between cells, it is theoretically possible to ensure that poorly functioning cells associated with aging die, while the rest, the "good" ones, continue to perform their functions. However, according to Oils and her colleagues, it's not that simple.
As the body ages, two important things happen at the cellular level. Firstly, some cells "slow down" and lose the ability to function normally. This happens, for example, with cells that produce pigment that colors hair. They stop their work, and we turn gray. Secondly, other cells begin to grow more actively, which can lead to the formation of tumors. As we age, cancer cells accumulate in our body. According to scientists, this happens even in those people who have no symptoms of cancer.
The authors of the new work believe that even if intercellular selection would be ideal, aging would continue, since cancer cells prefer to "play" not quite "honestly".
"As you age, most of your cells deform and lose function. In addition, these cells stop growing," says the lead author of the new study, Paul Nelson, a postdoc at the University of Arizona. – But some cells start growing like crazy. We have shown that this is a trap. If you get rid of poorly functioning "decrepit" cells, then cancer cells will be able to multiply freely. If you destroy cancer cells, "decrepit" cells will begin to accumulate in the body. Therefore, you have to choose one of two things – either allow the "old man cells" to accumulate, or allow cancer cells to multiply. Moreover, if you focus on one thing, you will not be able to do the second."
The fact that man is mortal is obvious and does not need to be discussed. But as part of the new work, scientists have tried to explain why aging is "an indisputable truth" and "an inherent property of multicellular organisms."
"People have been looking at the aging process, asking, "why hasn't natural selection stopped old age yet?" This approach implicitly assumed that "non-aging" is fundamentally possible, so why don't we just evolve in such a way to achieve this state? We argue that this is not a question of "why didn't evolution do something". Overcoming aging is impossible either with the help of natural selection mechanisms, or in any other way," says Oils.
After all, things just break down over time. And – according to mathematics – attempts to fix them only make it worse.
"You can slow down aging, but you are not able to stop it," the researcher adds. – We have mathematically proved that it is impossible to solve both problems [related to aging]. It will get worse over time, one way or another. Either all your cells will gradually become decrepit, or you will get cancer. And the main reason for this is the fact that things break down. No matter how much effort and time you spend, you still won't be able to stop this process."
"You have to live with that if you want to be a multicellular organism," adds Nelson.
At the same time, other scientists have already managed to find a "cure for gray hair." Perhaps the appearance of "pills for old age" is also not far off – regardless of whether they are possible from the point of view of mathematics.
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