The fifth, a 64-year-old former quarterback, was described as simply experiencing the memory loss consistent with normal aging.

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Rapamycin also is being studied for its impact on the normal aging process.

WSJ: Progeria Drug Study Helps in Search for Clues on Aging

Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health and one of the discoverers of the gene that causes progeria, said the drug's usefulness for vascular stiffness in normal aging is an important question to study.

WSJ: Progeria Drug Study Helps in Search for Clues on Aging

Families may be in denial or assume that memory problems are just a normal part of aging, while patients may be terrified of losing their ability to live independently.

WSJ: New Push For Early Testing, Treatment For Dementia

One of the reasons for this, as demonstrated in a recent paper by researchers at Yale medical school, is that when a person experiences extreme stress, or just goes through the normal process of aging, the prefrontal cortex accumulates cyclic-AMP.

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Yet compared to most cars on the road, the acceleration in my gracefully aging 4-door is more than enough for any normal driving situation.

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