Genetic and pharmacological research on aging is hampered by the lifespan of 
available vertebrate models. We recently initiated studies on Nothobranchius 
furzeri, a species with a maximum life expectancy in captivity of just three 
months which represents the shortest documented captive lifespan for a 
vertebrate. Further research on N. furzeri has demonstrated that 1. Short 
lifespan is tied with explosive growth and accelerated sexual maturation. 2. 
Short lifespan is correlated with expression of age-related behavioral and 
histological changes. 3. Lifespan and expression of age-related markers can be 
modulated by water temperature. 4. Resveratrol, a drug characterized for its 
life-extending action in Caenorhabditis elegans and Drosophila, increases 
lifespan and retards expression of age-related markers. 5. Aging-related genes 
can be easily isolated by homology cloning. Finally, different populations or 
species of Nothobranchius show large-scale differences in captive lifespan. In 
the last three years, N. furzeri has moved from biological curiosity to a 
promising model system for drug validation. Furthermore, this species occupies a 
favorable position in the Teleost's "tree of life". It is very close to the 
Japanese Medaka, and close to the pufferfishes and stickleback and might 
represent a very useful model for comparative genomics of aging.