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Peer-reviewedCC BYLife Medicine

The entropic view of aging: from thermodynamics to biology

  • Zeming Wu1,2
  • Shuai Ma1,3,4,5
  • Si Wang6,1
  • Moshi Song1,3,4,5
  • Weiqi Zhang1,7,5
  • Jing Qu1,3,8,4,5
  • Juan Carlos Izpisúa Belmonte9,10
  • Guang‐Hui Liu1,3,4,5
10 affiliations
  1. 1Aging Biomarker Consortium (ABC) , Beijing 100101,
  2. 2School of Life Sciences, Jilin University , Changchun 130012,
  3. 3Beijing Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine , Beijing 100101,
  4. 4State Key Laboratory of Organ Regeneration and Reconstruction, Human Organ Physiopathology Emulation System, Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences , Beijing 100101,
  5. 5University of Chinese Academy of Sciences , Beijing 100049,
  6. 6Advanced Innovation Center for Human Brain Protection, National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric Disorders, Aging Translational Medicine Center, Beijing Municipal Geriatric Medical Research Center, Beijing Key Laboratory of Environment and Aging, Xuanwu Hospital Capital Medical University , Beijing 100053,
  7. 7China National Center for Bioinformation and Beijing Institute of Genomics, Chinese Academy of Sciences , Beijing 100101,
  8. 8Beijing Institute of Heart Lung and Blood Vessel Diseases, Beijing Anzhen Hospital, Capital Medical University , Beijing 100029,
  9. 9Altos Labs San Diego Institute of Science , San Diego, CA 94065,
  10. 10Salk Institute for Biological Studies , La Jolla, CA 92037,
Open at sourceDOICite

Abstract

A growing body of evidence suggests that aging is not simply the accumulation of damage, but a systemic progression of increasing entropy across biological scales. Synthesizing concepts from thermodynamics and information theory, we outline a tentative three-stage entropy model of the lifespan: order-building development, homeostatic adulthood, and disorder-dominant aging. Within this model, we attempt to reframe the established hallmarks of aging as interconnected nodes in an entropy-centered network and detail the multiscale manifestations of disorder from molecules to systems. To quantify this trajectory, we introduce a Multiscale Entropic Aging Index (MEAI) as a proof-of-concept conceptual framework, designed to integrate measurements of disorder across biological levels. This framework seeks to offer a potential unifying, quantitative language for aging research and suggests that entropy reduction could serve as a testable mechanism underlying interventions, laying a principled foundation for the future development of biomarkers and rejuvenative strategies.

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Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{wu2026entropic,
  title = {{The entropic view of aging: from thermodynamics to biology}},
  author = {Zeming Wu and Shuai Ma and Si Wang and Moshi Song and Weiqi Zhang and Jing Qu and Juan Carlos Izpisúa Belmonte and Guang‐Hui Liu},
  journal = {Life Medicine},
  year = {2026},
  month = may,
  doi = {10.1093/lifemedi/lnag020},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.1093/lifemedi/lnag020},
  note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - The entropic view of aging: from thermodynamics to biology
AU  - Zeming Wu
AU  - Shuai Ma
AU  - Si Wang
AU  - Moshi Song
AU  - Weiqi Zhang
AU  - Jing Qu
AU  - Juan Carlos Izpisúa Belmonte
AU  - Guang‐Hui Liu
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/05/23
JO  - Life Medicine
DO  - 10.1093/lifemedi/lnag020
UR  - https://doi.org/10.1093/lifemedi/lnag020
AB  - A growing body of evidence suggests that aging is not simply the accumulation of damage, but a systemic progression of increasing entropy across biological scales. Synthesizing concepts from thermodynamics and information theory, we outline a tentative three-stage entropy model of the lifespan: order-building development, homeostatic adulthood, and disorder-dominant aging. Within this model, we attempt to reframe the established hallmarks of aging as interconnected nodes in an entropy-centered network and detail the multiscale manifestations of disorder from molecules to systems. To quantify this trajectory, we introduce a Multiscale Entropic Aging Index (MEAI) as a proof-of-concept conceptual framework, designed to integrate measurements of disorder across biological levels. This framework seeks to offer a potential unifying, quantitative language for aging research and suggests that entropy reduction could serve as a testable mechanism underlying interventions, laying a principled foundation for the future development of biomarkers and rejuvenative strategies.
SN  - 2755-1733
ER  -