Apolipoprotein E genotype and age at menopause.

We tested the hypothesis that there is a connection between apolipoprotein E (APOE) genotype and age at menopause. A sample of women aged between 50 and 60 years who had reached natural menopause was studied. Survival analysis of data showed a significant relationship between APOE genotype and age at menopause, carriers of the APOE4 allele reaching menopause at an earlier age.

Reproductive switch and aging: the case of leptin change in dietary restriction.

We have proposed that normal food intake is geared toward optimizing the internal milieu for reproduction, despite some components of this milieu being detrimental to health. In dietary restriction, the animal is prevented from eating enough to attain or maintain reproductive capacity and this particular milieu does not materialize. Life extension occurs as a by-product.

An appetite for death.

A diverse array of organisms live longer under dietary restriction. Here, a hypothesis is proposed as a framework for interpreting this phenomenon. Dietary restriction is explained in terms of evolution and antagonistic pleiotropy.

Investigations on the nature of the cost of reproduction: susceptibility to heat stress in fruitflies.

Studies in various species have shown that changes in reproductive activity result in inverse changes in life span. It is interesting to know how this "cost of reproduction" is incurred. It is possible that reproductive activity renders the organism more vulnerable to stress and that accumulated damage has a role in the observed decrease in life span.