Comment on 'Naked mole-rat mortality rates defy Gompertzian laws by not increasing with age'

Abstract

Ruby et al. recently analyzed historical lifespan data on more than 3200 naked mole-rats, collected over a total observation period of about 38 years (Ruby et al., 2018). They report that mortality hazards do not seem to increase across the full range of their so-far-observed lifespan, and conclude that this defiance of Gompertz's law ‘uniquely identifies the naked mole-rat as a non-aging mammal’. Here, we explain why we believe this conclusion is premature.

Keywords

• naked mole-rat
• aging
• Gompertz
• longevity
• Bathyergidae
• mammals