Ageing or aging (see spelling differences) is the process of becoming
older. The term refers especially to human beings, many animals, and
fungi, whereas for example bacteria, perennial plants and some simple
animals are potentially biologically immortal. In the broader sense,
aging can refer to single cells within an organism which have ceased
dividing (cellular senescence) or to the population of a species
(population ageing).In humans, aging represents the accumulation of
changes in a human being over time and can encompass physical,
psychological, and social changes. Reaction time, for example, may
slow with age, while knowledge of world events and wisdom may expand.
Aging is among the greatest known risk factors for most human
diseases: of the roughly 150,000 people who die each day across the
globe, about two-thirds die from age-related causes.The causes of
aging are uncertain; current theories are assigned to the damage
concept, whereby the accumulation of damage (such as DNA oxidation)
may cause biological systems to fail, or to the programmed aging
concept, whereby internal processes (such as DNA methylation) may
cause aging. Programmed aging should not be confused with programmed
cell death (apoptosis).
older. The term refers especially to human beings, many animals, and
fungi, whereas for example bacteria, perennial plants and some simple
animals are potentially biologically immortal. In the broader sense,
aging can refer to single cells within an organism which have ceased
dividing (cellular senescence) or to the population of a species
(population ageing).In humans, aging represents the accumulation of
changes in a human being over time and can encompass physical,
psychological, and social changes. Reaction time, for example, may
slow with age, while knowledge of world events and wisdom may expand.
Aging is among the greatest known risk factors for most human
diseases: of the roughly 150,000 people who die each day across the
globe, about two-thirds die from age-related causes.The causes of
aging are uncertain; current theories are assigned to the damage
concept, whereby the accumulation of damage (such as DNA oxidation)
may cause biological systems to fail, or to the programmed aging
concept, whereby internal processes (such as DNA methylation) may
cause aging. Programmed aging should not be confused with programmed
cell death (apoptosis).
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