Aging is an inevitable biochemical process that adversely affects personal health and poses ever-increasing challenges to society. Recent research has revealed the crucial role of metabolism in regulating aging and longevity. During diverse metabolic processes, the host organism and their symbiotic partners—the microbiota—produce thousands of chemical products (metabolites). Emerging studies have uncovered specific metabolites that act as signaling molecules to actively regulate longevity. Here we review the latest progress in understanding the molecular mechanisms by which metabolites from the host and/or microbiota promote longevity. We also highlight state-of-the-art technologies for discovering, profiling and imaging aging- and longevity-regulating metabolites and for deciphering the molecular basis of their actions. The broad application of these technologies in aging research, together with future advances, will foster the systematic discovery of aging- and longevity-regulating metabolites and their signaling pathways. These metabolite signals should provide promising targets for developing new interventions to promote longevity and healthy aging.

衰老是一个不可避免的生化过程，对个人健康产生不利影响，对社会提出越来越大的挑战。最近的研究揭示了新陈代谢在调节衰老和长寿中的关键作用。在不同的代谢过程中，宿主生物及其共生伙伴——微生物群——会产生数以千计的化学产品（代谢物）。新兴研究发现了特定的代谢物，它们作为信号分子主动调节寿命。在这里，我们回顾了了解宿主和/或微生物群的代谢物促进长寿的分子机制的最新进展。我们还强调了用于发现、分析和成像衰老和长寿调节代谢物以及破译其作用的分子基础的最先进技术。这些技术在衰老研究中的广泛应用，以及未来的进步，将促进对衰老和长寿调节代谢物及其信号通路的系统发现。这些代谢物信号应该为开发新的干预措施以促进长寿和健康老龄化提供有希望的目标。