Longevity quotient explained
Longevity Quotient (LQ) is a simplified measure to enable normalized comparisons of various species' longevity. It shares some similarity with measures such as Intelligence Quotient. It originated with Steven N. Austad and Kathleen E Fischer's 1991 paper on mammalian aging.[1] [2]
The detailed description of LQ was originally defined as the ratio of Actual Lifespan divided by Predicted Lifespan obtained from the Nonflying Eutherans (NFE) regression relating observed lifespan and body mass relationship. This followed the work of John Prothero and Klaus Jurgens who strictly looked to related longevity and body mass.[3] Austad spells out that "Excluding bats and marsupials mean LQ is 1.0 by definition"[4]
Aging and longevity researchers utilize LQ with additional metrics such as maximum species life span (MLSP). Rochelle Buffenstein considers MLSP as an important species aging characteristic that can vary over a factor of 40,000 throughout the animal kingdom, and is related species increase in body size.[5] Buffenstein identifies the Longevity Quotient as the ratio of actual MLSP to that predicted by body mass.
Recent LQ based research identified some bats are relatively much long-lived. Myotis brandtii is estimated to have an LQ of 8.[6] [7]
Common measures in Aging and Longevity research include Life-Span VariablesMass, Maximum longevity, Predicted MLSP, Longevity quotient (Fisher Austad Formalism, Longevity quotient (Prothero Jugrens Formalism) and lifetime energy expenditure (LEE) (normalized using kilocaories/gram).
Theories of Longevity and LQ
Buffenstein describes the evolutionary theory of aging as a nonadaptive result of the declining power of natural selection allowing harmful genetic mutations may prevail suggesting that species living underground would have long life spans. Using LQ measures it appears that only the social subterranean species have high LQs. Additional discussions of longevity and MLSP abound[8]
Comparative LQ
Comparative Longevity Quotient (using Austad Fischer Scale)| Species | Longevity Quotient | Maximum Lifespan (years) |
|---|
| Human | 5.1 | 122 |
| Mice | 0.7 | 4 |
| Rats | 0.6 | 5 |
| Myotis brandtii | 8.0 | 41 |
| Naked Mole Rats | 5.0 | 28.3 | |
See also
Further reading
- Austad . Steven N. . Fischer . Kathleen E. . Primate longevity: Its place in the mammalian scheme . American Journal of Primatology . 1992 . 28 . 4 . 251–261 . 10.1002/ajp.1350280403 . 31941205 . 86528693 .
- Brenner . Charles . Longevity lessons Methuselah's Zoo: What Nature Can Teach Us About Living Longer, Healthier Lives Steven N. Austad MIT Press, 2022. 320 pp. . Science . 12 August 2022 . 377 . 6607 . 718 . 10.1126/science.add9130 . 35951694 . 251516708 .
- Kirkwood . Thomas B. L. . Austad . Steven N. . Why do we age? . Nature . November 2000 . 408 . 6809 . 233–238 . 10.1038/35041682 . 11089980 . 2000Natur.408..233K . 2579770 .
- Farré . Xavier . Molina . Ruben . Barteri . Fabio . Timmers . Paul R H J . Joshi . Peter K . Oliva . Baldomero . Acosta . Sandra . Esteve-Altava . Borja . Navarro . Arcadi . Muntané . Gerard . Comparative Analysis of Mammal Genomes Unveils Key Genomic Variability for Human Life Span . Molecular Biology and Evolution . 27 October 2021 . 38 . 11 . 4948–4961 . 10.1093/molbev/msab219 . 34297086 . 8557403 .
- Buffenstein . Rochelle . Amoroso . Vincent . Andziak . Blazej . Avdieiev . Stanislav . Azpurua . Jorge . Barker . Alison J. . Bennett . Nigel C. . Brieño-Enríquez . Miguel A. . Bronner . Gary N. . Coen . Clive . Delaney . Martha A. . Dengler-Crish . Christine M. . Edrey . Yael H. . Faulkes . Chris G. . Frankel . Daniel . Friedlander . Gerard . Gibney . Patrick A. . Gorbunova . Vera . Hine . Christopher . Holmes . Melissa M. . Jarvis . Jennifer U. M. . Kawamura . Yoshimi . Kutsukake . Nobuyuki . Kenyon . Cynthia . Khaled . Walid T. . Kikusui . Takefumi . Kissil . Joseph . Lagestee . Samantha . Larson . John . Lauer . Amanda . Lavrenchenko . Leonid A. . Lee . Angela . Levitt . Jonathan B. . Lewin . Gary R. . Lewis Hardell . Kaitlyn N. . Lin . TzuHua D. . Mason . Matthew J. . McCloskey . Dan . McMahon . Mary . Miura . Kyoko . Mogi . Kazutaka . Narayan . Vikram . O'Connor . Timothy P. . Okanoya . Kazuo . O'Riain . M. Justin . Park . Thomas J. . Place . Ned J. . Podshivalova . Katie . Pamenter . Matthew E. . Pyott . Sonja J. . Reznick . Jane . Ruby . J. Graham . Salmon . Adam B. . Santos-Sacchi . Joseph . Sarko . Diana K. . Seluanov . Andrei . Shepard . Alyssa . Smith . Megan . Storey . Kenneth B. . Tian . Xiao . Vice . Emily N. . Viltard . Mélanie . Watarai . Akiyuki . Wywial . Ewa . Yamakawa . Masanori . Zemlemerova . Elena D. . Zions . Michael . Smith . Ewan St. John . The naked truth: a comprehensive clarification and classification of current 'myths' in naked mole-rat biology . Biological Reviews . February 2022 . 97 . 1 . 115–140 . 10.1111/brv.12791 . 34476892 . 237400113 . free . 9277573 .
- Ruby . J. Graham . Smith . Megan . Buffenstein . Rochelle . Five years later, with double the demographic data, naked mole-rat mortality rates continue to defy Gompertzian laws by not increasing with age . 28 March 2023 . 10.1101/2023.03.27.534424 . 257837688 .
Notes and References
- Austad . S. N. . Fischer . K. E. . Mammalian Aging, Metabolism, and Ecology: Evidence From the Bats and Marsupials . Journal of Gerontology . 1 March 1991 . 46 . 2 . B47–B53 . 10.1093/geronj/46.2.B47 . 1997563 .
- Book: Austad . Steven N. . Methuselah's Zoo: What Nature Can Teach Us about Living Longer, Healthier Lives . 2022 . MIT Press . 978-0-262-04709-8 . 1286312358 .
- Book: 10.1007/978-1-4613-1939-9_4 . Scaling of Maximal Lifespan in Mammals: A Review . Evolution of Longevity in Animals . 1987 . Prothero . John . Jürgens . Klaus D. . Basic Life Sciences . 42 . 49–74 . 3325028 . 978-1-4612-9077-3 .
- Austad . S. N. . Methusaleh's Zoo: how nature provides us with clues for extending human health span . Journal of Comparative Pathology . January 2010 . 142 . Suppl 1 . S10–21 . 10.1016/j.jcpa.2009.10.024 . 19962715 . 3535457 .
- Buffenstein . R. . The Naked Mole-Rat: A New Long-Living Model for Human Aging Research . The Journals of Gerontology Series A: Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences . 1 November 2005 . 60 . 11 . 1369–1377 . 10.1093/gerona/60.11.1369 . 16339321 .
- Wilkinson . Gerald S. . Adams . Danielle M. . Recurrent evolution of extreme longevity in bats . Biology Letters . April 2019 . 15 . 4 . 20180860 . 10.1098/rsbl.2018.0860 . 30966896 . 6501359 .
- Podlutsky . A. J. . Khritankov . A. M. . Ovodov . N. D. . Austad . S. N. . A New Field Record for Bat Longevity . The Journals of Gerontology Series A: Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences . 1 November 2005 . 60 . 11 . 1366–1368 . 10.1093/gerona/60.11.1366 . 16339320 . free .
- Hulbert . A. J. . Pamplona . Reinald . Buffenstein . Rochelle . Buttemer . W. A. . Life and Death: Metabolic Rate, Membrane Composition, and Life Span of Animals . Physiological Reviews . October 2007 . 87 . 4 . 1175–1213 . 10.1152/physrev.00047.2006 . 17928583 .
