GeroScience Interest Group (GSIG)

Geroscience is an interdisciplinary field focused on the discovery and translation of methods and interventions that target aging pathways to prevent, minimize, or reverse chronic diseases and functional decline that can occur among individuals of older ages.

Given the rapid population growth worldwide of individuals over the age of 65, it is critical to accelerate research that will improve overall health among this group. This includes developing preventative measures that can reduce the overall burden of age-related diseases and loss of function. Individuals of older age are often afflicted by multiple comorbidities, and aging is the major risk factor for many chronic diseases and disabilities that impact this group. Extension of lifespan in laboratory animals is often accompanied by a delay in the appearance and progression of not one, but several diseases of aging simultaneously, as well as a slowing in age-related functional decline. That is, a slower rate of aging leads to an increase in healthspan, which is the ultimate goal of geroscience research.

The NIH Geroscience Interest Group (GSIG) includes participation by 20 NIH Institutes, Centers, and Offices with a common interest to understand, from a multi-disciplinary approach, how the aging process drives the appearance of multiple diseases of the elderly. The group includes both intramural and extramural scientists. Through its activities, the group aims to promote further discoveries on how aging as a risk factor, intersects with the common risks and mechanisms underlying chronic diseases and conditions. The GSIG holds monthly meetings, educational webinars, and a range of activities both inside and outside the NIH, including major conferences and summits, lectures and collaborations with other federal and non-federal entities. See the GSIG full site at https://www.nia.nih.gov/gsig.

Mailing List

To join the GSIG and receive group communications, email Siobhan Addie, Ph.D., NIA.