EVIDENCE FOR SENESCENT CONVERGENCE DURING HUMAN AGING

'Senescent convergence' is the observation that, with advancing age, m ultiple measurements of organ/body size, chemistry or function, reveal values for the higher percentiles which decrease faster than those of the lower percentiles. That is, values of the extremes appear to be c onverging with advanced age. In some cases, the equations for describi ng this can be modified to include a term that accounts for the percen tile of the observation. Examples were given of calculating the age at which values of 2 different percentiles, of the property being measur ed, become identical ('age at convergence'). Exceptions to senescent c onvergence, such as related to diseases like osteoporotic vertebral fr actures, were mentioned. It was noted that the curves of senescent con vergence resembled the inverse of those of postnatal growth.