Berlin 2015 – scientific programme

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BP: Fachverband Biologische Physik

BP 56: Aging in Physical and Biological Systems (focus session, joint DY/BP)

BP 56.1: Invited Talk

Friday, March 20, 2015, 09:30–10:00, BH-N 334

Demographic perspectives on the evolution of senescence — •Annette Baudisch — University of Southern Denmark, Campusvej 55, 5230 Odense M

Senescence, the physiological decline that results in decreasing survival and/or reproduction with age, remains one of the most perplexing topics in biology. Most theories attempting to explain the evolution of senescence (i.e. antagonistic pleiotropy, mutation accumulation, disposable soma) were developed several decades ago. Confronted with empirical patterns of survival and reproduction, predictions of the theories do not hold. New theory is needed to shed light on the determinants of patterns of birth and death. At this point it might be feasible and instructive to broaden perspectives by cutting across disciplinary boundaries and seek for a general theory of determinants of birth and death patterns, i.e. life course trajectories, pertaining to animate or inanimate objects on any scale of observation.