From biology of ageing to geroscience: where will knowledge take us?

Healthy life expectancy is a major challenge in many countries and one of the World Health Organisation’s main concerns for the current decade. With different animal models, from invertebrates to mammals, research into the biology of ageing has identified various biological and physiological processes that alter the quality of ageing. Twelve characteristics of ageing have been defined, and the aim of a growing number of studies is to find how to slow down or halt their onset. Unfortunately, the direct transposition of animal models to humans is too often disappointing, and the race to bring anti-ageing products to market is a source of misleading promises. The development of geroscience will enable the identification and validation, with more relevant clinical evidence, of pro-ageing targets to develop anti-ageing therapies and aim for healthy ageing.