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Why is the liver so weirdly regenerative?

576 points · 293 comments · jbotz

  1. schnuri · · focus · HN ↗
    I am in awe about how wonderfully engineered by evolution the body is. E.g., what we are able to do with it and how it heals itself when we have an injury. Sure, many people would not live long without external intervention, but many others would. I still want to see the robot that can survive 80 active years without maintenance.
    1. chistev · · focus · HN ↗
      The human body can't survive 80 active years without maintainance. They take drugs, they see the doctor, etc.
      1. CookieCrisp · · focus · HN ↗
        What did people do 500 years ago?
        1. EduardoBautista · · focus · HN ↗
          Die as a child at alarming rates
          1. lukan · · focus · HN ↗
            But those who did not, got quite old without ever seeing a doctor.

            (If we are talking about hunter gatherers, not poor exploited peasants)

            1. 1attice · · focus · HN ↗
              Citation required
              1. Fezzik · · focus · HN ↗
                Gurven, Michael & Hillard Kaplan (2007). “Longevity Among Hunter-Gatherers: A Cross-Cultural Examination.” Population and Development Review, 33(2), 321–365

                If you made it past age 5 as a hunter-gatherer you’d likely live to 50-60 years of age.

                1. 1attice · · focus · HN ↗
                  Interesting. Yet as someone approaching the first of those two last numbers, I would say that that isn't very old at all
                  1. Fezzik · · focus · HN ↗
                    It’s also worth noting that, while this is (I think) likely the most cited paper on the topic, all the observed societies are from the 20th century. So we can’t necessarily extrapolate from that that hunter-gatherers 300,000 years ago fared the same.
                  2. exe34 · · focus · HN ↗
                    Old people are at least 20-30 years older than I am.
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