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Aubrey de Grey

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Aubrey de Grey

Aubrey de Grey (D.O.B April 20 1963) is a biomedical gerontologist and bioinformatician at the Department of Genetics, University of Cambridge, England. He is working to expedite the development of a 'cure' for human aging, a medical goal he refers to as engineered negligible senescence (senescence means the biological decline of aging). To this end, he has identified what he concludes are the seven areas of the aging process that need to be addressed medically before this can be done. He has been interviewed in recent years in many news sources, including the BBC, the New York Times, Fortune Magazine, and Popular Science.

Prior to his work as a biologist, de Grey was formally trained in computer science. In 1985 he received a B.A. in Computer Science. In 1995 de Grey turned his attention to the biology of aging and published the book "The Mitochondrial Free Radical Theory of Aging". The book's contributions to the molecular biology of mitochondria in aging were well-received in the field. The book also controversially claimed that obviating damage to mitochondria might by itself extend lifespan significantly, though it stated that it was more likely that cumulative damage to mitochondria is a significant cause of senescence, but not the single dominant cause. In recognition of his book on mitochondria and other publications, in 2000 Cambridge granted de Grey a Ph.D. in biology.

Regarding his background as a computer scientist (in genetics), he states:

"There are really very important differences between the type of creativity involved in being a basic scientist and being an engineer. It means that I’m able to think in very different ways and come up with approaches to things that are different from the way a basic scientist might think."

He argues that the fundamental knowledge necessary to develop effective anti-aging medicine mostly exists today, and that the science is actually ahead of the funding. He works to identify and promote specific technological approaches to the reversal of various aspects of aging, or as De Grey puts it, "the set of accumulated side effects from metabolism that eventually kills us,", and for the more proactive and urgent approaches to extending the healthy human lifespan. Regarding this issue, De Grey is a supporter of life extension.

De Grey is Editor-in-Chief of the Rejuvenation Research journal, which deals with topics related to engineered negligible senescence.

As of 2005, de Grey's current work at Cambridge centered around a detailed plan called Strategies for Engineered Negligible Senescence (SENS) which is aimed at preventing age-related physical and cognitive decline. He is also the co-founder (with David Gobel) and chief scientist of the Methuselah Mouse Prize, a prize designed to accelerate research into effective life extension interventions by awarding monetary prizes to researchers who extend the lifespan of mice to unprecedented lengths. Regarding this, De Grey stated in March 2005 "if we are to bring about real regenerative therapies that will benefit not just future generations, but those of us who are alive today, we must encourage scientists to work on the problem of aging." The prize reached US$3 million in November 2005, after having reached US$1.5 million in August 2005. De Grey believes that once dramatic life extension of already middle-aged mice has been achieved, a large amount of funding will be diverted to this kind of research, which would accelerate progress in doing the same for humans.

In 2005 de Grey was attacked in a set of three articles in Technology Review, all of them directed by editor Jason Pontin. The full details are covered in the article De Grey Technology Review controversy.

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