5 ms·

If only I were a mouse. With all the research papers I've seen on HN over the years, I'm pretty sure I could live to be 200.

SkyMarshal 4y ago
Survivor bias. I suspect there’s like a 100:1 ratio of dead laboratory mice to 200yr old mice.
- Pxtl 4y ago
  I think 100:1 ratio for "long and happy life" among lab mice would be hilariously optimistic. Because of their speed of reproduction, their lack of reusability, and the fact that in order to cure diseases you first have to inflict them, lab mice are basically in a constant state of massacre. They're not even livestock. They're more on the tier of stationery.
  - thisisnico 4y ago
    I'll be patiently waiting for the vermintide - the day the rats fight back.
ramraj07 4y ago
Remember that all of this research is done on mouse strains in highly controlled lab environments. Many of these results won’t even apply to other strains from what they were tested leave alone mice in the wild. PS: strains means stable inbred clone producing animals.
- steve_adams_86 4y ago
  Is this for the purpose of more easily identifying causative factors? Kind of like always developing/debugging in the same environment for reproducible results?
  - abdullahkhalids 4y ago
    Yes. But also I think there is certain amount of selection for mice that will behave and cooperate with lab protocols. Meaning, mice strains, that for instance, aggressively destroy stuff, or sleep too much will not be used.
  - stenl 4y ago
    Yes, but at the same time most inbred strains have genetic disorders precisely because they are inbred. E.g. the most commonly used strain C57BL/6 develops age-related hearing loss. To avoid this, there are other lab strains like CD-1, which are deliberately bred to maintain a controlled level of genetic heterogeneity.
- alfor 4y ago
  Lab mice have unnatural long telomeres. That make them far more resistant to damaging pharma (lot’s of cell repair) The downside is they all die of cancer (telomere length is a stop to cell replication)
moremetadata 4y ago
Of the studies I've read, its my opinion that we actually have the knowledge to drastically expand lifespans, but because resources are finite and strained, the decision to use man made drugs to alter certain chemical reactions in the body which fix one problem but cause others, is what's limiting our lifespans, along with glyphosate added to the supply chain at different stages. If you cant afford to go organic, your lifespan and your kids lifespans and their number of offspring will be reduced.

SkyMarshal 4y ago

Survivor bias. I suspect there’s like a 100:1 ratio of dead laboratory mice to 200yr old mice.

Pxtl 4y ago
I think 100:1 ratio for "long and happy life" among lab mice would be hilariously optimistic. Because of their speed of reproduction, their lack of reusability, and the fact that in order to cure diseases you first have to inflict them, lab mice are basically in a constant state of massacre. They're not even livestock. They're more on the tier of stationery.
- thisisnico 4y ago
  I'll be patiently waiting for the vermintide - the day the rats fight back.

ramraj07 4y ago

Remember that all of this research is done on mouse strains in highly controlled lab environments. Many of these results won’t even apply to other strains from what they were tested leave alone mice in the wild. PS: strains means stable inbred clone producing animals.

steve_adams_86 4y ago
Is this for the purpose of more easily identifying causative factors? Kind of like always developing/debugging in the same environment for reproducible results?
- abdullahkhalids 4y ago
  Yes. But also I think there is certain amount of selection for mice that will behave and cooperate with lab protocols. Meaning, mice strains, that for instance, aggressively destroy stuff, or sleep too much will not be used.
- stenl 4y ago
  Yes, but at the same time most inbred strains have genetic disorders precisely because they are inbred. E.g. the most commonly used strain C57BL/6 develops age-related hearing loss. To avoid this, there are other lab strains like CD-1, which are deliberately bred to maintain a controlled level of genetic heterogeneity.
alfor 4y ago
Lab mice have unnatural long telomeres. That make them far more resistant to damaging pharma (lot’s of cell repair) The downside is they all die of cancer (telomere length is a stop to cell replication)

moremetadata 4y ago

Of the studies I've read, its my opinion that we actually have the knowledge to drastically expand lifespans, but because resources are finite and strained, the decision to use man made drugs to alter certain chemical reactions in the body which fix one problem but cause others, is what's limiting our lifespans, along with glyphosate added to the supply chain at different stages. If you cant afford to go organic, your lifespan and your kids lifespans and their number of offspring will be reduced.