University College London CRUCIBLE, supported by BBSRC, EPSRC, ESRC and MRC

过去50年来医学的进步导致人口日益老龄化，这对发达国家和发展中国家都是一个重大问题。21世纪社会面临的挑战是确保在延长寿命的同时保持生活质量。世界卫生组织定义？积极老龄化？作为？优化健康、参与和安全机会的过程，以便随着人们年龄的增长提高生活质量。了解一个人的衰老过程？人的一生以及决定生活质量的参数对于开展研究至关重要，这些研究将提供有意义的解决方案，作为政策决策的基础。这将需要包括以下方面的研究：老龄化的基本生物学;影响个人身心衰老的疾病/状况;减少发病率的治疗和其他干预措施;老龄人口的流行病学;工程、建筑和设计考虑;社会和文化问题;伦理和法律的影响;经济因素。在所有这些领域工作的研究人员都可以为这一主题做出重大的个人贡献，但越来越需要的是一个？整体治疗？一种方法，不仅一个领域的成果为其他学科的研究提供信息，而且研究人员能够共同努力解决具体问题（跨学科）。虽然人们认识到这种研究方法对于解决所有重大的全球问题至关重要，但它仍然是相对较新的，而且接受过这种方式思考的研究人员很少。伦敦大学学院拥有上述所有学科的专业知识和经验，该中心的目标是通过鼓励和促进更跨学科的方法来增加现有老龄化研究的价值。至关重要的是计划中的教育方案，这些方案将培养出一批未来的研究人员，他们经过培训，能够更广泛地思考各个学科，在其核心专业领域之外工作也很舒服。该中心的另一个重要特点是让研究的最终用户-无论是健康或体弱的老龄人口-参与进来，以确保所开展的工作和产生的新想法真正切合实际。因此，该中心的一个高度优先事项将是确保将成果转化为有益于普通民众终身健康和福祉的实际惠益。

Advances in medical science over the past fifty years have resulted in increasingly ageing populations which now present a major issue for developed and developing countries alike. The challenge for society in the twenty-first century is to ensure that this increased longevity is accompanied by the maintenance of quality of life. The World Health Organisation defines ?active ageing? as ?the process of optimising opportunities for health, participation and security in order to enhance quality of life as people age?. An understanding of the ageing process throughout an individual?s lifetime and what parameters determine quality of life are crucial to conducting research which will provide meaningful solutions on which to base policy decisions. This will need to encompass research on: the basic biology of ageing; diseases/conditions which affect individuals as they age both physically and mentally; therapeutic and other interventions to ameliorate morbidity; epidemiology of ageing populations; engineering, architectural and design considerations; social and cultural issues; ethical and legal ramifications; economic factors. Researchers working in all of these areas can make significant individual contributions to the subject but what is increasingly required is a ?holistic? approach where not only do outcomes in one area inform research in other disciplines but where investigators are able to work together to tackle specific issues (interdisciplinary). Although it is recognised that this method of conducting research is essential to tackling all the major global issues, it is still relatively new and investigators trained to think in this way are few in number. UCL has expertise and experience in all the disciplines listed above and the aim of the Centre will be to add-value to existing research in ageing by encouraging and facilitating a more interdisciplinary approach. Of crucial importance will be the education programmes that are planned which will produce a cadre of future researchers, trained to think more broadly across the disciplines, who are comfortable working outside their core areas of expertise. A further important feature of the Centre will be the involvement of the end-users of the research - the ageing population, whether fit or infirm and frail, - to ensure that the work undertaken and the new ideas generated are truly relevant. A high priority of the Centre will therefore be to ensure translation of outcomes into meaningful benefits for the Lifelong Health and Wellbeing of the general population.