The Baur lab is interested in the basic mechanisms that lead to aging and age-related diseases, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer, and neurodegenerative disorders. Although the causes of aging are not known, it can be delayed experimentally in rodents by decreasing energy intake in the absence of malnutrition (caloric restriction, CR) and by a growing list of genetic and small molecule interventions. The Baur lab employs genetic models, isotopic labeling strategies, and metabolomics to probe the molecular mechanisms by which nutrient-sensing and metabolic pathways connect to aging, with a present focus on nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD) metabolism and mTOR signaling.