The American Aging Association

I see that the American Aging Association has entered the modern era with a new website:

The American Aging Association is a non-profit group of experts dedicated to increasing functional life span through research, education, and advocacy in the field of biomedical gerontology.

The American Aging Association was launched at a special luncheon meeting at the Waldorf-Astoria in New York City, October 19, 1970. Organized by a group of distinguished medical doctors and scientists who wanted a specific organization dedicated to aging research. Several state chapters were affiliated with the Association in the early years to draw attention to the public for the necessity for support of programs to eliminate aging. The formation of the Association also led to the development of affiliated groups, the International Association of Biomedical Gerontology in 1985 and the American College of Clinical Gerontology in 1986.

Each year, the Association provides an annual conference to share aging research and to recognize and award young investigators with disciplines in aging research. In the early years, the meeting rotated between New York City, Washington, D.C. and San Francisco. Currently, the conference locations are selected throughout the United States and are held in the first week of June.

This year's conference is scheduled for May 31st to June 3rd in Baltimore.

This year we highlight the work of international experts in the molecular and cellular biology of aging, physiology and genetics of aging, experimental technology development, and healthcare policy. With these topics we focus on the interventions that the convergence of results from model systems indicate are possible for slowing and even reversing degenerative processes.

The American Aging Association is not a wealthy organization; a research trust fund was established more than two decades ago, but has not grown large enough to distribute more than a few thousand dollars a year to research goals in aging science. It is worth remembering that advocates for longevity science faced an unrelenting uphill struggle prior to the last decade, far worse than the hard work it is today: a research community unwilling to speak out on the topic, a disinterested public, and little animal research that demonstrated ways and means to notably enhance longevity.

The group does publish a noted journal, however. You'll probably recognize some of the editorial board:

AGE is a quarterly, international, peer-reviewed journal that publishes articles related to research in the biology of aging and research on biomedical applications that impact aging.
Comments

It seems unbelievable that the general public wouldn't be interested in fighting ageing. I wish these guys the best and hope they get increased funding. I have the feeling people like Ray Kurzweil would be delighted to back them up.

Posted by: David Yerle at January 9th, 2013 6:17 AM
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