49. What are major recent advances in the field?

Two major advances have changed the field. One is the development of biomarkers of aging, the tools that help us to measure aging. For example, their use revealed that aging begins already during early development, that biological age is dynamic and reversible, and that there is a natural process of rejuvenation (embryonic rejuvenation). Biomarkers helped reframe aging from a monotonic process to a regulated, plastic state variable that can be perturbed, measured, and (sometimes) reset. The second major advance involves cell reprogramming, which demonstrated that cells could transition from an adult to early embryonic stages, i.e. they can be rejuvenated.