The idea that parts of a whole are not separate entities, but units of division of a fundamentally different type (entity-in-relationship) allows us to apply analysis methods at the abstract level and consider the real structure by considering the essential relationships of structural parts, which also applies to weakly structured systems (for example, metabolism for living organisms).
The most important position on the transition from the analysis of equilibrium states to the analysis of nonequilibrium, irreversible states (super) complex systems allows us to understand the fundamental unidirectionality of the aging phenomenon, to look for the presence of fundamentally irreducible phenomena that determine movement in one direction only.
The position of the system analysis that there is no entity, meaning and structure of an object outside of evolution, requires to consider the entire period of ontogenesis as a single whole, and not aging as a process that is separated from the development of the whole organism, needs to look for an association of aging with processes of growth and development of the body. In addition, the evolution of the living provides a vivid example of the evolution of the forms of aging and the possibilities of influencing it, as well as the dependence of such forms and influences on the specific structure of the living system of one or another level of complexity.
The principle of the consideration hierarchy actually reflects the different level of the real structure of the object, the presence of separate organs and systems with a special structure and function, which determines its particular mechanisms of aging for molecules, cells, organs, systems of the body and the whole organism with its common regulatory systems.
Finally, it is important to understand the essence of the phenomenon, which is considered as an ideal law that determines the appearance of the phenomenon, its functioning and evolution in the hierarchy of interrelationships of the whole.
This idea makes it possible to move away from considering the many specific mechanisms of aging to its cause, as an idealprinciple and the essence of aging, and also to understand how the general principle is implemented by specific mechanisms. This is one of the stumbling blocks in modern gerontology, in which many open mechanisms of aging are given for a reason, which has already spawned hundreds of theories of aging.
The sticking point remains the question of the cause and nature of the phenomenon of aging, also solved by system analysis.
1.4.2. General methodology about the cause of phenomena
When one speaks of a single natural theory of aging, it is quite clear that it must answer a number of central questions:
the time of appearance of aging in evolution;
whether aging is a general law of nature or a private mechanism for the existence of individual forms of the living;
what are the essence and the fundamental, common cause of aging;
what are the general laws and particular types and mechanisms of the manifestation of aging;
what are the fundamental features of human aging;
what are the general perspectives and ways to overcome aging as a natural phenomenon;
what are the specific approaches to the effects on the main types and mechanisms of aging;
the importance of aging in general, the general way to overcome it, and the peculiarities of this task in humans.
One of the central issues in the consideration of aging as a global phenomenon is the question of the primary cause and the deep, fundamental nature of aging.
Regarding the general methodology for the consideration of the issue, it should be said that it was known in ancient times Platon developed it in the most complete form. The leading contemporary philosopher-methodologist A.F. Losev formulates the most important provisions for us as follows: Current experience gives us an idea only of flowing and scattered bodies and events, in which neither beginning nor end is seen and whose meaning remains vague due to its fluidity, very often incomprehensible and blind And since the scientific understanding of a thing requires the final disclosure of its meaning, then the theory of ideas arises as ultimately developed communities.. A full-fledged scientific analysis is characterized as follows: To understand and correct components is necessary through the whole The idea is the ultimate community, has a structure and is meaningfully filled, respectively has its own specific (own) already purely ideal objectivity and reality this limiting community manifests itself in its particular, in a semantic way, never moving beyond its limits The essence (of something) is interpreted as a principle of structure.
Thus, it is clear that the essence, the cause of aging can be expressed only in the language of high-level abstraction as an objective pattern of life, being, as a principle, but not at all as a process, much less as a specific special mechanism in the body. The reduction of principles to mechanisms is the main methodological error in the natural sciences, including in gerontology. It is quite clear that when defining the term aging, the definition of the principle of aging as a phenomenon turns out to be necessary and sufficient, which has been known and understood for a long time: aging is a decrease in viability with age, or an increase in the probability of death with time, or, more, in general terms, it can be said that aging is an increase in the degree of chaos at all structural levels of the organism, which is manifested by a general decrease in the bodys resistance to all factors and is recorded as an increase in the probability of death from all causes of aging.
The definition reveals the very essence of the phenomenon of aging, which acts as a global, fundamental cause of aging because the cause of the accumulation of chaos (entropy) in closed systems has long been known: it is a law of nature, known in particular as the second law of thermo-dynamics. Now the interpretation of this law has significantly expanded and deepened in connection with its extension to information processes.
In biology and mathematics, the most interesting are modern trends: theories of self-organization, theories of open systems, describing the generation of information, its relationship with chaos, the role of energy in this process, etc.
The applicability of the second law of thermodynamics to living systems is related to the fact that they are only partially open systems: in any modern complex organism, there are structures that are not updated inside the organism cells, molecules, organelles, organs, etc. Thus, the fundamental reason for the aging of any complex systems is the discreteness of the forms of existence of modern organisms on Earth separation from the external environment, which puts a limit on the capacity for the internal evolution of an organism while preserving its quality as a separate system. In general, this is known as the inevitability of the accumulation of chaos in any partially open system limited from the external environment with time.
The self-renewability of a living system within itself is not a sufficient factor in counteracting aging in general, since it is possible to counteract the second law of thermodynamics only due to external influences on the system and these influences essentially lead to evolution, and not to stabilize any system.
The self-renewability of a living system within itself is not a sufficient factor in counteracting aging in general, since it is possible to counteract the second law of thermodynamics only due to external influences on the system and these influences essentially lead to evolution, and not to stabilize any system.
1.4.3. Aging Hierarchy
The most important approach to the analysis in a systemic examination is to take into account the hierarchy of the structures of real complex systems. At the same time, system analysis requires consideration of principles characteristic of each hierarchical level.
Such a hierarchy of consideration in system analysis reflects not the material structure of the object that morphological sciences study, but a hierarchy of essential principles reflecting the laws of functioning and communication within and between the structural levels of the object being considered, which acts as a complex hierarchical dynamic system.
The following table gives an idea of the hierarchy of aging in terms of a systematic approach (Table 1).
Table 1. The hierarchy of consideration of aging in terms of a systematic approach
Three hierarchical levels of aging description are fundamentally ideal and are available only for theoretical analysis.
The last level is structural and its study is possible only when it is filled with biological content. With this consideration, it can be seen that the primary cause, as a principle, is manifested by several of the most common patterns the types of aging inherent in all living systems. These types, in turn, form a number of interrelated groups of symptoms aging syndromes, which already include specific manifestations of aging at the level of specific mechanisms that implement aging depending on specific conditions.
The systematic consideration of aging is also manifested in the fact that in each specific manifestation, the mechanism of aging, you can see all four levels mentioned above: a reflection of the ideal cause in specific conditions; relation to a greater extent to a certain type of aging; regular relationship at the level of mechanisms with other symptoms (syndromes); and, finally, the actual concrete actual manifestation of aging for the phenomenon under study in a specific case for a specific structure. Naturally, the more specific and narrow the phenomenon we study, the more specific, but more narrowly, the cause of aging manifests itself.
For the whole organism, aging as a whole can be sufficiently fully characterized only with the use of all four hierarchical levels of its presentation. An important and traditional is the structural consideration of the body or its individual elements.
Here again, the system approach allows revealing the moments obscured by usual consideration.
The dynamic view of the phenomenon under consideration indicates that living systems exist only as a stream, where continuity is preserved, but not always the entire real material structure. Processes in a living system occur at different time levels. So, at the metabolic level, these are (micro) seconds of biochemical reactions during which specific molecules exist; for cells, these are hours and days during which they are divided (cell cycle); for the whole organism, these are years, decades and even centuries.
Each level can have representation at a higher level with some of its structural elements (non-updated genes at the cell level, non-dividing cells at the suborgan level, etc.), then these lower-level elements become important for higher-level aging.
Each level is updated at the expense of a higher level, which reduces the absolute significance of the lowest level for aging higher (for example, cell growth and division sharply reduce the importance of aging or damage at the molecular level).
Each level is qualitatively different in structure and principles of organization and functioning.
All levels constitute a single whole, its change, in the final analysis, is only important as the aging of the organism is the aging of the whole.
Thus, consideration of the system analysis requirements for the aging phenomenon makes it possible to see the fundamentally important points of the problem analysis.
The most important is the ability to solve a number of central problems in gerontology in general, which allows to determine the common cause of aging systems and biological systems in particular, the main mechanisms for the manifestation of the common cause of aging, as well as the ways of manifestation of these common mechanisms of aging.
It is possible to identify the main properties of the biological system, which lead directly to its aging, to evaluate ways of influencing the aging of the organism and individual organs, systems, tissues and cells, as well as to clearly understand the prospects for such effects, their points of application and possible efficiency, as well as the fundamental The limited nature of these or other effects, the limits of their application and the ability to influence the aging of the whole organism.
The use of systems analysis puts gerontology as a science of aging on a clear methodological basis, leads it away from many circulating myths that are now replacing the general picture of aging and clear scientific views on it in gerontology.
System analysis in the first place allows you to move from the infinite consideration of particular views and mechanisms of aging to the consideration of the laws and principles that act during the aging of living systems, which just determines both the fundamentally possible main mechanisms of aging and the possible effects on it as well as the ultimate perspectives of such opportunities.
Thus, the use of the provisions of system analysis allows us to understand much in the problem of aging already at the level of abstract analysis.
1.5. Essential modeling the basis of understanding the phenomenon of aging
The creation of theoretical models of the process under study is the most important element of knowledge, therefore this issue is given central attention in any modern field of science.
Gerontology in this regard is experiencing a crisis related to the fact that the old principles of creating conceptual models of aging, essentially reducing to the absolutization of certain observable phenomena and particular mechanisms of aging, have collapsed. All the so-called theories of aging, which now number hundreds already, have proved to be untenable in explaining the fundamental basis of aging and in many respects are only of historical interest.
On the other hand, a number of purely mathematical approaches to the modeling of aging does not meet with interest and recognition among biologists, since even with the most superficial study one can see biologically unjustified and in fact incorrect initial prerequisites of the models.
So, for example, fashionable environmental and evolutionary mathematical theories of aging, based on the idea of expediency of aging as a mechanism for the accelerated renewal of the species, ignore the obvious fact of high natural mortality in the wild when old animals are virtually absent in the population and almost all animals die young.
At the same time, there is an urgent need for a clear general view of the phenomenon of aging in general, using models that allow one to quantitatively and meaningfully interpret the aging of organisms. At present, one of the most important tasks of gerontology is the rather detailed development of essential models of aging, reflecting the very essence of this common to all living phenomenon and being biologically based and biologically meaningful.