Prof.dr. R.G.J. Westendorp
'We have made extensive contributions to the development and evaluation of testable hypotheses on the etiology of disease at old age. Such hypotheses emerge from evolutionary theory, advances in basic research, as well as clinical observations. The identification of risk factors of disease at old age is critical, as prospective analyses of our cohorts of old people have shown that determinants of disease at middle age cannot always be extrapolated to old age. In addition to the classic epidemiological studies, we have initiated a large collaborative effort including evolutionary biologists and molecular epidemiologists to identify genes that determine longevity. This approach has only been marginally explored in longevity studies, and has never been attempted in one integrated research project.'