Aging is a natural process of organismal decay that underpins the development of myriad diseases and disorders. Extensive efforts have been made to understand the biology of aging and its regulation, but most studies focus solely on the host organism. Considering the pivotal role of the microbiota in host health and metabolism, we propose viewing the host and its microbiota as a single biological entity whose aging phenotype is influenced by the complex interplay between host and bacterial genetics. In this review we present how the microbiota changes as the host ages, but also how the intricate relationship between host and indigenous bacteria impacts organismal aging and life span. In addition, we highlight other microbiota-dependent mechanisms that potentially regulate aging, and present experimental animal models for addressing these questions. Importantly, we propose microbiome dysbiosis as an additional hallmark and biomarker of aging.

中文翻译：

---

微生物组和老化。

衰老是有机体衰变的自然过程，是无数疾病和失调发展的基础。为了理解衰老的生物学及其调控，已经进行了广泛的努力，但是大多数研究仅集中在宿主生物上。考虑到微生物群在宿主健康和代谢中的关键作用，我们建议将宿主及其微生物群视为一个单一的生物实体，其衰老表型受宿主与细菌遗传学之间复杂相互作用的影响。在这篇综述中，我们介绍了微生物群随宿主年龄的变化，以及宿主与本地细菌之间复杂的关系如何影响生物衰老和寿命。此外，我们重点介绍了可能调控衰老的其他微生物依赖性机制，并提出了用于解决这些问题的实验动物模型。