Calorie restriction is known to extend lifespan in a wide range of species; however, the effects are variable and findings from animal models are often not applicable to humans, as the calorie restriction regimes are generally difficult to adhere to in the real world. Now, a paper has explored the effects and underlying mechanisms of several different methods of calorie restriction and dietary restriction in a genetically diverse mouse model, including dietary patterns that can be more realistically adhered to in the general human population.

From 6 months of age, 937 female mice were randomly assigned to one of five groups: ad libitum feeding; one day per week of fasting; two consecutive days per week of fasting; 20% calorie restriction; and 40% calorie restriction. The mice were kept on the diet for the duration of their natural lives. Mice in the intermittent fasting groups demonstrated compensatory feeding after the fasting period, such that mice in the one-day fast group consumed a similar amount to the mice in the ad libitum group and mice in the two-day fast group consumed 12% less. The mice in the two calorie restriction groups received their allotment of food for the weekend on Friday afternoons, and had typically consumed it by Saturday afternoon (40% calorie restriction) or Sunday afternoon (20% calorie restriction), which resulted in weekly fasting periods. The mice were also monitored in metabolic cages at three time points: ~5, ~16 and ~26 months old.

众所周知，卡路里限制可以延长许多物种的寿命;然而，效果是可变的，动物模型的结果通常不适用于人类，因为卡路里限制制度在现实世界中通常难以遵守。现在，一篇论文在遗传多样化的小鼠模型中探讨了几种不同卡路里限制和饮食限制方法的影响和潜在机制，包括可以在普通人群中更现实地遵守的饮食模式。

从 6 个月大开始，将 937 只雌性小鼠随机分配到五组中的一组：随意进食;每周禁食一天;每周连续两天禁食;20% 卡路里限制;和 40% 的卡路里限制。小鼠在其自然寿命期间保持饮食状态。间歇性禁食组的小鼠在禁食期后表现出补偿性进食，因此 1 天禁食组的小鼠消耗量与随意组的小鼠相似，两天禁食组的小鼠消耗量减少 12%。两个卡路里限制组中的小鼠在周五下午收到分配的周末食物，通常在周六下午（40% 卡路里限制）或周日下午（20% 卡路里限制）之前食用，这导致每周禁食。小鼠还在三个时间点在代谢笼中进行了监测：~5、~16 和 ~26 个月大。