Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme I/D Polymorphism and Exercise-Induced Changes in Physical Function among Caucasian Older Adults

The Division of Biology of Aging vision focuses on research to enhance and extend the human health span through a better understanding of the biological mechanisms and the functional consequences that underlie the aging process. This includes the full spectrum of research from applying discoveries made in the laboratory, developing trials and studies for humans, and enhancing the adoption of best treatment practices into the medical community. The division’s goals are to identify and investigate novel opportunities to better understand the mechanisms of aging, and to provide research service, seminars and education to investigators within UF and the national aging research community. The objectives of the division’s research are to elucidate the biochemical, genetic, and physiological mechanisms of aging that result in age-related functional (both physical and cognitive) decline in humans and animal models. This includes investigations of the gradual or programmed alterations of structure and function that characterize normal aging, and investigations of the adverse changes that are risk factors for or accompany age-related disease states. The division’s current broad research areas include: 1. Animal Models (Function and Behavior). 2. Musculoskeletal Biology (Function, Physiology and Biochemistry). 3. Cardiovascular Biology (Function, Physiology and Biochemistry). 4. Sensory Biology (Function, Physiology and Biochemistry). 5. Cell Structure and Function (Inflammation, Oxidative Stress, Proteolysis and Apoptosis). 6. Metabolic Regulation (Mitochondria, Body Composition/Imaging). The ultimate goal of our research program is to better understand why and how we age at the molecular, cellular, and tissue levels. Cognitive Aging and Memory Clinical Translational Research Program (CAM-CTRP) Program Supported by the McKnight Brain Research Foundation. Program Director: Ron A. Cohen, Ph.D., ABPP, ABCN Approximately one in seven adults over the age of 65 experience moderate to severe cognitive impairments, including problem with memory. These impairments adversely impact the ability of the elderly to remain functionally independent, and also interfere with health status and quality of life. People are increasingly reaching very advanced age, and there is evidence that the prevalence of cognitive and memory dysfunction will approach fifty percent among centenarians, providing a strong rationale for an intensification of clinical and translational neuroscience directed at age-associated cognitive decline. Research is needed to identify biomarkers that can identify people at risk for functional decline and early signals that changes in the brain are occurring prior to onset of overt symptoms. There is also a major need for research aimed at developing new interventions to prevent and remediate age-associated cognitive problems before disabling functional decline occurs. The Cognitive Aging and Memory Clinical Translational Research Program (CAM-CTRP) addresses this critical need. Pain Research and Intervention Center of Excellence (PRICE) Roger Fillingim, PhD, Department of Aging and Geriatric research, UF College of Medicine; and Department of Community Dentistry and Behavioral Science, UF College of Dentistry. Chronic pain represents the most prevalent and costliest public health condition affecting the United States; therefore, an improved understanding of chronic pain, leading to more effective pain treatments, is urgently needed. The University of Florida Pain Research and Intervention Center of Excellence (PRICE) endeavors to reduce pain-related suffering throughout Florida and the nation through excellence in pain research, treatment and education, which ultimately will be achieved by integrating all three missions under one interdisciplinary Center of Excellence. PRICE is a multi-college Center of Excellence that serves as the professional home for UF’s nationally recognized cadre of more than 40 multidisciplinary UF scientists, clinicians and trainees dedicated to improved understanding and treatment of pain. PRICE is affiliated with the UF Clinical and Translational Science Institute (CTSI) and receives strong support from the UF Institute on Aging and the UFHealth Cancer Center. PRICE provides investigators with resources and services in order to facilitate clinical and translational pain research at UF. A major PRICE resource is the Pain Clinical Research Unit (PainCRU), a patient-oriented research venue that provides facilities and personnel to support clinical and translational pain research at UF. The PainCRU occupies more than 2,000 square feet of laboratory space across three locations at the UF Health Sciences Center, including the new Clinical and Translational Research Building, with locations in both the Clinical Research Center and Institute on Aging (IOA). The IOA collaboration is particularly valuable, because PRICE investigators are national leaders in pain and aging research. Indeed, PRICE researchers are conducting novel and important studies to elucidate age-related changes in the functioning of the pain system, which represents a primary focus of research for PRICE. In addition, PRICEaffiliated investigators are pursuing several other pain research themes, including: the influence of gender, race and ethnicity on pain responses and decisions about pain treatment; determining risk factors for development of chronic pain disorders; uncovering central nervous system factors influencing placebo analgesia; exploring mechanisms of musculoskeletal pain; explicating interactions between pain and sleep; and identifying contributors to pain following cancer treatment. By providing infrastructure and resources to facilitate pain research and by enabling increased collaboration and interaction among UF pain scientists, PRICE intends to transform the UF pain research enterprise, leading to novel discoveries that will ultimately and improve pain treatment in Florida and throughout the country. Physical Exercise to Prevent Disability: The Lifestyle Interventions and Independence for Elders (LIFE)