Systems approaches to the networks of aging

Abstract

The aging of an organism is the result of complex changes in structure and function of molecules, cells, tissues, and whole body systems. To increase our understanding of how aging works, we have to analyze and integrate quantitative evidence from multiple levels of biological organization. Here, we define a broader conceptual framework for a quantitative, computational systems biology approach to aging. Initially, we consider fractal supply networks that give rise to scaling laws relating body mass, metabolism and lifespan. This approach provides a top-down view of constrained cellular processes. Concomitantly, multi-omics data generation build such a framework from the bottom-up, using modeling strategies to identify key pathways and their physiological capacity. Multiscale spatio-temporal representations finally connect molecular processes with structural organization. As aging manifests on a systems level, it emerges as a highly networked process regulated through feedback loops between levels of biological organization. © 2006 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.