Who We Are
The San Antonio Claude D. Pepper Older Americans Independence Center is the home of a multidisciplinary team of researchers with diverse and complementary interests on aging.
The San Antonio Claude D. Pepper Older Americans Independence Center is the home of a multidisciplinary team of researchers with diverse and complementary interests on aging.
The mission of the San Antonio Pepper Center is to support a thriving transdisciplinary research program to improve the health and independence of all older adults. We translate basic science discoveries on the biology of aging from lower animal models, such as invertebrates and rodents, through pre-clinical studies in non-human primates, to clinical trials in humans. We nurture the intellectual environment providing opportunities for ideas exchange and collaborations within the Pepper Center, and with other local programs, other Pepper Centers and other NIH Centers across the country, and with other institutions. We support and enhance the research infrastructure, maintain and expand the scientific knowledge, provide specialized services to other researchers and research programs, and serve as a site for multi-center and multi-institutional collaborations. We also train and support the career development of the next generation of scientists, clinicians, and leaders in aging and geriatrics.
The San Antonio Pepper Center is the first focused on the concept of geroscience: aging per se is the fundamental cause of the major diseases that lead to disability and death; by targeting the basic mechanisms of aging we can extend human healthspan, lifespan, and independence. Our theme is Translational geroscience to improve the health and functional independence of all older adults. We emphasize research on physical function and health disparities, as the predominantly Hispanic population we serve experiences an earlier onset of age-related diseases and functional decline. Thus, geroscience strategies may have a greater positive impact in this underserved and understudied population.
The aims of the San Antonio Pepper Center are:
To acknowledge San Antonio Pepper Center support, please add the grant number P30AG044271.