The AnAge Database

The AnAge database is another of the fascinating resources that researcher Joao Pedro de Magalhaes is building into his senescence.info website. Welcome to AnAge, a curated database of ageing and life history in animals, including extensive longevity records. AnAge was primarily developed for comparative biology studies, in particular studies of longevity and ageing, but can also be useful for ecological and conservation studies and as a reference for zoos and field biologists. You might recall that de Magalhaes is one of the folk pushing for genetic sequencing of long-lived mammals: Among mammals alone there is at least a 40-fold variation in maximum longevity. We still do not know why different species of similar body plan, biochemistry, and physiology can age at such different rates, but these differences must be seated in the genome. So go and take a stroll around the AnAge toolset. Those of you looking for a quick and interesting result can jump straight to the list of species ordered by current best estimate or record of maximum longevity: Scolymastra joubini, Hexactinellid sponge: 15,000 yearsPinus longaeva, Great Basin bristlecone pine: 4,731 yearsCinachyra antarctica, Epibenthic sponge: 1,550 yearsArctica islandica, Ocean quahog: 400 yearsBalaena mysticetus, Bowhead whale: 211 yearsSebastes aleutianus,...