Avian models have the potential to elucidate basic cellular and molecular mechanisms
underlying the slow aging rates and exceptional longevity typical of this group of vertebrates …

Geroscientists now recognize that avian models have the potential to elucidate the basic
cellular mechanisms underlying long life span and resistance to oxidative damage …

Comparative gerontologists now recognize that birds as a group are exceptionally long-lived
for their body sizes, especially given their lifetime energy expenditures, and that domestic …

The class Aves is a diverse group consisting of approximately 9600 species of birds in 29
orders [1-3] which, on the whole, are remarkable for their longevity. Body weights of birds …

The long life spans and slow aging rates of birds relative to mammals are paradoxical in
view of birds' high metabolic rates, body temperatures and blood glucose levels, all of which …

Candidate mechanisms for physiological aging include free radical production and resulting
oxidative damage, progressive erosion of telomeres and cellular senescence, age …

Many laboratory models used in aging research are inappropriate for understanding
senescence in mammals, including humans, because of fundamental differences in life …

Despite their high lifetime energy expenditures, most birds can be characterized as long-
lived homeotherms with moderately slow aging. A growing body of research confirms the …

Organismal aging, or senescence, can be defined as a progressive, irreversible loss of
function that results in declines in fertility and survival. This definition restricts “aging” to age …

This special issue of AGE showcases powerful alternative or unconventional approaches to
basic aging research, including the use of exceptionally long-lived animal model species …