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The survival of antibody-secreting plasma cells is essential for long-lasting humoral immunity. BCMA is proposed to promote APRIL-mediated survival signals. However, extensive shedding of murine BCMA raises doubts about its role as a signaling receptor. To unequivocally establish BCMA's function in plasma cell survival, we generate two BCMA-deficient mouse lines and examine antigen-specific plasma cells post-immunization. Contrary to previous reports, both BCMA-deficient mouse lines have...

The C. elegans-Orsay virus pathosystem provides a powerful model for investigating the mechanisms that govern viral infection and immunity. Here, we focus on two key aspects of this interaction: the impact of lifelong latent infections and the dynamics of superinfection. By tracking the course of a lifelong infection, we demonstrate that the infection remains latent, with animals maintaining control over viral replication for most of their lifespan. Furthermore, we show that animals previously...

Accumulating evidence suggests that mitogenic signaling during cell cycle arrest can lead to severe cytotoxic outcomes, such as senescence, though the underlying mechanisms remain poorly understood. Here, we explored the link between cell cycle dynamics and the formation of PML-nuclear bodies (PML-NBs), intranuclear structures known to mediate cellular stress responses. Our findings demonstrate that PML-NBs increase their number during interphase arrest. Moreover, the activation of mitogenic ERK...

Plan to revamp research and merge environment and energy ministries sparks concern

The iPsych project, which investigates the genetics of psychiatric disorders, has sent 140,000 opt-out notices amid backlash

Cognitive aging is associated with increased prefrontal cortex (PFC) activity, often interpreted as either a compensatory mechanism or a sign of neural inefficiency. In the context of speech-in-noise perception, it remains unclear whether this increase supports or impairs performance, as findings across studies are mixed. This study investigated age-related differences in PFC activity during sentence comprehension in noise using functional near-infrared spectroscopy. Fifty-seven participants (22...

Combating aging has become a central challenge in the life sciences, and myocardial aging, as a fundamental pathological process underlying the development and progression of various cardiovascular diseases, has become a key area in anti-aging research. In recent years, lactylation and methylation, two metabolism-dependent epigenetic modifications, have garnered increasing attention in the context of myocardial aging. Lactylation, mediated by lactate accumulation due to metabolic dysregulation,...

CONCLUSION: All visceral fat accumulation indicators were positively associated with sarcopenia risk and WWI identified as the most important predictor. The ML model achieved high predictive accuracy, highlighting the role of visceral fat accumulation in sarcopenia risk and healthy aging promotion.

Epigenetic drift refers to the gradual and stochastic accumulation of epigenetic changes, such as DNA methylation variability, with advancing age. Although increasingly recognized for its potential role in aging biology, its extent, biological significance, and population specificity remain insufficiently characterized. Here, we present the first comprehensive epigenome-wide drift study (EWDS) in a large Chinese cohort (n = 3,538), with replication in two independent Chinese (total n = 1,467)...

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Engram cells storing episodic memories are allocated to separate neuronal ensembles. However, how these ensembles maintain their stability to drive precise memory expression, and whether their destabilization contributes to aging-related memory deficits, remain elusive. Here, we show that during contextual fear memory consolidation, neuronal pentraxin 1 (NPTX1) in Fos transcription-dependent ensemble (F-RAM) of the dentate gyrus (DG) promotes memory expression in the fear context. NPTX1...

This study investigates the association between park proximity and self-reported health among older adults in China, with particular attention to the moderating effects of housing characteristics. Drawing on large-scale individual survey data and 2015 park point-of-interest (POI) data, the analysis shows that closer proximity to formally designated public parks is significantly associated with better self-reported health among older adults. The study further explores whether housing features...

CONCLUSIONS: LA and LA types are independently associated with IC in community-dwelling older adults. Therefore, participation in diverse leisure activities is necessary for maintaining and improving IC in the older adults.

CONCLUSIONS: These findings enrich our understanding of CCRC decision-making in China by highlighting the ongoing influence of sociocultural values and personal autonomy throughout the process. Importantly, the need for personalized care persists throughout all stages, with particular emphasis on psychological support and cultural sensitivity in service delivery. Policy recommendations include improving affordability, accessibility, and community integration to better support older adults and...

Aging poses significant challenges to cardiovascular health necessitating novel therapeutic approaches. This study investigates the potential of the brown adipose tissue (BAT) derived lipokine 12,13-diHOME to mitigate age-induced impairments in cardiovascular function. Analysis of human and rodent plasma signaling lipids reveals a decline in 12,13-diHOME levels with age. Transplantation of BAT or sustained upregulation of 12,13-diHOME effectively preserved cardiac function in aged male and...

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease characterized by amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles. Recent evidence implicates extracellular matrix (ECM) dysfunction in disease pathogenesis, including extensive loss of perineuronal nets (PNNs). PNNs are neuron-ensheathing condensed ECM structures composed of chondroitin sulfate proteoglycans, including the main constituent aggrecan (ACAN). To explore the role of PNNs in AD, we utilize the 5xFAD model and genetically target Acan...

CONCLUSIONS: DBS significantly improved motor, neuropsychological, and quality-of-life outcomes across all PD durations, with the most substantial benefits observed in mid-duration (5-10 years) patients. While levodopa response was a consistent positive prognostic factor for motor response, caution is warranted for short-duration patients with rapidly progressive motor symptoms, as they exhibited less favorable outcomes.

Healthy aging relies on a symbiotic host-microbiota relationship. The age-associated decline of the immune system can pose a threat to this delicate equilibrium. In this work, we investigated how the functional deterioration of T cells can affect host-microbiota symbiosis and gut barrier integrity and the implications of this deterioration for inflammaging, senescence, and health decline. Using the Tfam^(fl/fl)Cd4^(Cre) mouse model, we found that T cell failure compromised gut immunity leading...

ObjectivesSensory loss is associated with increased dementia risk, yet the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. This longitudinal study examined the association between self-reported sensory difficulty (vision, hearing, dual), social and physical activity, and dementia risk among older U.S. adults.MethodsData were drawn from the 2015-2020 National Health and Aging Trends Study (N = 6,295). Discrete-time survival mediation models with a structural equation modeling-based approach were estimated...

The disposable soma theory (DST) posits that organisms prioritize reproductive success over long-term somatic maintenance, resulting in an inevitable decline after reproduction. However, such a basis does not fully explain the human brain's capacity to preserve metabolically costly, plastic, and cognitively essential functions well beyond the reproductive peak. This Perspective challenges the universality of DST by proposing that brain aging follows a selectively resilient trajectory, shaped by...