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Idle slow as you grow old: longitudinal age-related metabolic decline in a wild passerine

Broggi, Juli ; Hohtola, Esa ; Koivula, Kari ; Orell, Markku and Nilsson, Jan-Åke LU (2010) In Evolutionary Ecology 24(1). p.177-184
Abstract
Physiological changes due to aging are intensively studied as they have far-reaching implications for the mechanistic and evolutionary theories of senescence. In this respect, metabolic rate has been suggested to play a role for the deterioration and damage of cells and tissues with age, partly due to the generation of reactive oxygen species. To mitigate such damage, individuals can be predicted to reduce basal metabolic rate (BMR) with age. This prediction has been verified in humans and some laboratory animals but never in wild animal populations. We analyzed the change in BMR within individuals across years in two wild populations of great tit (Parus major) differing in BMR. Great tits, living under stressful conditions towards the... (More)
Physiological changes due to aging are intensively studied as they have far-reaching implications for the mechanistic and evolutionary theories of senescence. In this respect, metabolic rate has been suggested to play a role for the deterioration and damage of cells and tissues with age, partly due to the generation of reactive oxygen species. To mitigate such damage, individuals can be predicted to reduce basal metabolic rate (BMR) with age. This prediction has been verified in humans and some laboratory animals but never in wild animal populations. We analyzed the change in BMR within individuals across years in two wild populations of great tit (Parus major) differing in BMR. Great tits, living under stressful conditions towards the northern limit of their distribution, decreased their BMR as they aged whereas no such decrease was found in a southern population. Thus, we found a clear decline only in the population with the highest BMR levels. This study provides the first evidence of an age-related decline in BMR for a wild homeotherm. (Less)
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author
; ; ; and
organization
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
Rate of, Aging, Basal metabolic rate, Functional senescence, living-free-radical damage hypothesis, Parus major
in
Evolutionary Ecology
volume
24
issue
1
pages
177 - 184
publisher
Springer
external identifiers
  • wos:000274037000013
  • scopus:75549087999
ISSN
1573-8477
DOI
10.1007/s10682-009-9299-z
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
d6494c65-c8be-4536-b7d3-f2da71d1f08b (old id 1546978)
date added to LUP
2016-04-01 13:36:12
date last changed
2024-01-24 12:46:23
@article{d6494c65-c8be-4536-b7d3-f2da71d1f08b,
  abstract     = {{Physiological changes due to aging are intensively studied as they have far-reaching implications for the mechanistic and evolutionary theories of senescence. In this respect, metabolic rate has been suggested to play a role for the deterioration and damage of cells and tissues with age, partly due to the generation of reactive oxygen species. To mitigate such damage, individuals can be predicted to reduce basal metabolic rate (BMR) with age. This prediction has been verified in humans and some laboratory animals but never in wild animal populations. We analyzed the change in BMR within individuals across years in two wild populations of great tit (Parus major) differing in BMR. Great tits, living under stressful conditions towards the northern limit of their distribution, decreased their BMR as they aged whereas no such decrease was found in a southern population. Thus, we found a clear decline only in the population with the highest BMR levels. This study provides the first evidence of an age-related decline in BMR for a wild homeotherm.}},
  author       = {{Broggi, Juli and Hohtola, Esa and Koivula, Kari and Orell, Markku and Nilsson, Jan-Åke}},
  issn         = {{1573-8477}},
  keywords     = {{Rate of; Aging; Basal metabolic rate; Functional senescence; living-free-radical damage hypothesis; Parus major}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{1}},
  pages        = {{177--184}},
  publisher    = {{Springer}},
  series       = {{Evolutionary Ecology}},
  title        = {{Idle slow as you grow old: longitudinal age-related metabolic decline in a wild passerine}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10682-009-9299-z}},
  doi          = {{10.1007/s10682-009-9299-z}},
  volume       = {{24}},
  year         = {{2010}},
}