Thomas Duffield

Scientist interested in the original root cause of biological ageing. All things epigenetic, signal processing and information science.

[Thomas Duffield @_ThomasDuffield]

Also, please be aware that the paper I linked is soon to be updated with several more datasets, so watch this space.

[Thomas Duffield @_ThomasDuffield]

Thanks @foresightinst and @allisondman for having me, it was a lot of fun. Thanks to everyone who attended and don't hesitate to contact me if you want to know more or discuss the work!

[João Pedro de Magalhães @jpsenescence]

I agree that aging research is a risky bet. But if we don’t do anything about it then the future - no matter how rich you are - is cancer, cardiovascular disease or dementia.

You might as well take a chance for you and your loved ones will live longer healthier lives.

[Thomas Duffield @_ThomasDuffield]

@LidskyPeter @jpsenescence ... to store less epigenetic information as they have less genome to cover, and this allows them to pay off high fidelity repair with less tradeoff than one might expect.

[Thomas Duffield @_ThomasDuffield]

@LidskyPeter @jpsenescence ... that demands encoding better fidelity.

I would not suggest predation to be the only factor, of course, but bird predation is interesting, as there is an interesting cavet in that bird genomes are much smaller than one might expected. It might be the case they need...

[Thomas Duffield @_ThomasDuffield]

@DrDorotaSK @LidskyPeter @jpsenescence ... each tissue, and so some tissues can 'afford' better fidelity because their storage issues are simpler, their damage is less frequent and the rest of their function is informatically cheap.

[Thomas Duffield @_ThomasDuffield]

@DrDorotaSK @LidskyPeter @jpsenescence That question has quite a complex answer, but in brief, I suggest that the rate of epigenetic damage accrued varies based on tissue and that there is a balance in selection between epigenetic fidelity and other cellular functions that must be found. It'll be different for...

[Thomas Duffield @_ThomasDuffield]

@LidskyPeter @jpsenescence Incidentally, I think this makes mice models more flawed as models of age than is typically thought.

[Thomas Duffield @_ThomasDuffield]

@LidskyPeter @jpsenescence ... the need for high fidelity repair. Furthermore, I speculate that species with high mortality independent of this epigenetic ageing do not 'select' for high fidelity repair. There is no point developing a system to prevent epigenetic damage if you always die to a hawk.

[Thomas Duffield @_ThomasDuffield]

@Halsted_19 @jpsenescence @LivuniILCaMS @InflamAge_UoB @UniofOxford Absolutely, just 'irreversible to evolution in the context of an adult human'. By naked example, 'age' is lost when two cells from old individuals (gametes) combine to form a new, young organism. I think the principles outlined here are a big part of why mammals have kids.

[Thomas Duffield @_ThomasDuffield]

@KarlPfleger @jpsenescence @LivuniILCaMS @InflamAge_UoB @UniofOxford @fedichev 3. I'm not entirely sure what you mean by 'diffs' but the problem with analogies is I like them far too much. Not including them here is a mercy, I assure you. Also, this theory required a very specific description, and I didn't want to muddy the waters.

[Thomas Duffield @_ThomasDuffield]

@KarlPfleger @jpsenescence @LivuniILCaMS @InflamAge_UoB @UniofOxford @fedichev Hi Karl, to respond:
1. I specifically didn't cover this here because we have another paper on the way about this.
2. We actually do make an argument about that, describing how we see these species as requiring fidelity low enough that they lack the typical data storage issue.

[Thomas Duffield @_ThomasDuffield]

Thrilled to finally be able to post our new paper! Honestly a lot went in to getting this one through the door. Still! Excited for feedback!

https://t.co/5XfsnnAo4B

[João Pedro de Magalhães @jpsenescence]

🚨New paper on epigenetic fidelity and ageing

We develop a conceptual model to explain aging based on first principles and conclude that epigenetic aging is inevitable.

Exciting work by @_ThomasDuffield @LivuniILCaMS + @InflamAge_UoB @UniofOxford

1/4

https://t.co/4jcq9rVgRj

[João Pedro de Magalhães @jpsenescence]

It had to happen to me someday.

A reviewer commented that our manuscript “needs to be seen by a native speaker”, and will only comment on the science “once the language issues are fixed” 🙄

#AcademicChatter #AcademicTwitter

https://t.co/QbNjtd9dVP

[Thomas Duffield @_ThomasDuffield]

I love it when things are "Giuliani doing impressions to god in a garden center parking lot" better than expected.

#fourseasonstotallandscaping #FourSeasons #RudyGluliani #Gluliani

[Thomas Duffield @_ThomasDuffield]

@elliot_gonzalez @rickygervais @NetflixUK @Channel4 @BBCOne @bbcthree @KerryAGodliman @bigtalk @JKCorden @jopage_ @kfRedhot @realmatbaynton @rufusjones1 @ReeceShearsmith @GuzKhanOfficial I see a confusing lack of option to vote for "Four Seasons Total Landscaping", a show I can really get behind.

#fourseasonstotallandscaping #AfterLife

[Stephen King @StephenKing]

In a contest pitting science vs. superstition, science won. That it was even close in our so-called age of enlightenment is worrying.