Age is the single greatest risk factor for a wide range of diseases, and as the mean age of human populations grows steadily older, the impact of this risk factor grows as well. Laboratory studies on the basic biology of ageing have shed light on numerous genetic pathways that have strong effects on lifespan. However, we still do not know the degree to which the pathways that affect ageing in the lab also influence variation in rates of ageing and age-related disease in human populations. Similarly, despite considerable effort, we have yet to identify reliable and reproducible ‘biomarkers’, which are predictors of one’s biological as opposed to chronological age. One challenge lies in the enormous mechanistic distance between genotype and downstream ageing phenotypes. Here, we consider the power of studying ‘endophenotypes’ in the context of ageing. Endophenotypes are the various molecular domains that exist at intermediate levels of organization between the genotype and phenotype. We focus our attention specifically on proteins and metabolites. Proteomic and metabolomic profiling has the potential to help identify the underlying causal mechanisms that link genotype to phenotype. We present a brief review of proteomics and metabolomics in ageing research with a focus on the potential of a systems biology and network-centric perspective in geroscience. While network analyses to study ageing utilizing proteomics and metabolomics are in their infancy, they may be the powerful model needed to discover underlying biological processes that influence natural variation in ageing, age-related disease, and longevity.
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July 2017
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This issue explores the molecular and cellular mechanisms which underpin the process of ageing. Guest Edited by Professor Tom Kirkwood, CBE and Dr Viktor Korolchuk of the Newcastle University Institute for Ageing and Health, the issue includes reviews on mechanisms involved in ageing include genome instability and redox stress as well as insights from systems biology and approaches for extending the human healthspan. - PDF Icon PDF LinkTable of Contents
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Review Article|
July 11 2017
Proteomics and metabolomics in ageing research: from biomarkers to systems biology
Jessica M. Hoffman;
Jessica M. Hoffman
*
1Department of Biology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, 1300 University Blvd CH464, Birmingham, AL 35294, U.S.A.
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Yang Lyu;
Yang Lyu
*
2Department of Molecular and Integrative Physiology and Geriatrics Center, Biomedical Sciences and Research Building, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, U.S.A.
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Scott D. Pletcher;
Scott D. Pletcher
2Department of Molecular and Integrative Physiology and Geriatrics Center, Biomedical Sciences and Research Building, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, U.S.A.
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Daniel E.L. Promislow
3Department of Pathology, University of Washington, Box 357705, 1959 NE Pacific Street, Seattle, Washington 98195, U.S.A.
4Department of Biology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington 98195, U.S.A.
Correspondence: Daniel Promislow (promislo@uw.edu)
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Publisher: Portland Press Ltd
Received:
March 20 2017
Revision Received:
May 16 2017
Accepted:
May 17 2017
Online ISSN: 1744-1358
Print ISSN: 0071-1365
© 2017 The Author(s). Published by Portland Press Limited on behalf of the Biochemical Society
2017
Essays Biochem (2017) 61 (3): 379–388.
Article history
Received:
March 20 2017
Revision Received:
May 16 2017
Accepted:
May 17 2017
Citation
Thomas B.L. Kirkwood, Viktor I. Korolchuk, Jessica M. Hoffman, Yang Lyu, Scott D. Pletcher, Daniel E.L. Promislow; Proteomics and metabolomics in ageing research: from biomarkers to systems biology. Essays Biochem 11 July 2017; 61 (3): 379–388. doi: https://doi.org/10.1042/EBC20160083
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