Alejandra Manjarrez, PhD | Jan 12, 2023 | 4 min read
Repairing damaged DNA appears to drive aging by causing the loss of epigenetic information, but restoring that information reverses such effects, a study finds.
Damaged lysosomes are repaired by a lipid-based signaling pathway dubbed PITT that could be targeted to treat neurodegenerative disease, its discoverers say.
Genes lacking a particular structure known as CpG islands tend to go haywire in older cells, a study finds, potentially contributing to key facets of aging. But it’s not yet clear if the relationship is causal.
Mice and flies given the polyamine in their diet have increased brain cell metabolism and cognitive function, and epidemiological data hints at a similar benefit in humans.
Many major biopharmaceutical companies are developing or acquiring drugs that target the NLRP3 inflammasome, a large intracellular complex that researchers say can spark inflammation and stoke diseases of lifestyle and aging.
Researchers repaired what is otherwise irreversible damage in the animals’ ocular neurons, by activating transcription factors ordinarily used to generate induced pluripotent stem cells.
The agency warns that plasma treatments costing thousands of dollars, which supposedly treat the infirmities of old age, have not been proven “safe or effective.”