#1211 Coleen Murphy - How We Age: The Science of Longevity

Feb 5, 2026

Coleen Murphy, a Princeton molecular biologist and author of How We Age, discusses aging research and longevity science. She covers model organisms like the killifish, longevity pathways and interventions such as rapamycin and metformin. She talks about diet and fasting evidence, exercise and body composition, DNA repair and stem cells, the gut microbiome, transgenerational effects, and the current longevity biotech landscape.

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INSIGHT

Science Versus Self-Help

The science of aging splits into lab research and popular self-help translation.
Coleen Murphy warns the field is unfinished and resists definitive self-help claims.

INSIGHT

Healthspan And Lifespan Align

Extending healthy years (healthspan) usually also extends lifespan.
Murphy says the supposed trade-off between lifespan and healthspan is largely a false framing.

INSIGHT

Lifespan Limits Are Not Fixed

Demographic limits on human lifespan derive from populations without longevity interventions.
Murphy notes future medical changes could alter any apparent biological limit.

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Dr. Coleen Murphy is James A. Elkins Jr. Professor in the Life Sciences, and Professor of Molecular Biology and Director of the Lewis-Sigler Institute for Integrative Genomics at Princeton University. She is the author of How We Age: The Science of Longevity.

In this episode, we focus on How We Age. We discuss the science of aging, what we can learn from it, why we age, and what we can learn from animal models and centenarians. We also talk about longevity pathways, and transgenerational effects. We discuss whether intermittent fasting works. We talk about the role of DNA repair and cell replacement. We discuss whether the gut microbiome plays a role in aging. Finally, we talk about the current state of longevity biotech, and how to approach new developments.

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