Aging and rejuvenation: An ant model to study the regulation of longevity
Description: Aging and rejuvenation: An ant model to study the regulation of longevity Project narrative: Ant colonies consist of nearly genetically identical individuals that exhibit different morphology, play distinct behavioral roles in the colony, and vary dramatically in their lifespan. In the absence of the queen, the non-reproductive workers of the ant Harpegnathos can transition into reproductive pseudo-queens (gamergates), accompanied by a five-fold extension of their lifespan and this can be fully reversed if gamergates are induced to transition back to the worker status. The extreme alteration in the degree of aging that accompanies the caste switch, combined with the experimental amenability of Harpegnathos, makes it an ideal system to characterize the molecular dynamics of aging, rejuvenation, and reproduction.
Funder: National Institute on Aging
Funding type: research
Funder scheme: R01
Start date: 2018-09-01
End date: 2028-02-29
Investigator: CLAUDE DESPLAN (lead)
Institution: New York University
Subfield: Aging
Domain: Life Sciences
Funded outputs count: 13
Funder award ID: R01AG058762
OpenAlex ID: G9000899562