Aging & Longevity

Telomere shortening is a hallmark of aging and has been implicated in cardiovascular disease, but its mechanistic link to atrial fibrillation (AF) remains elusive. Using a high-throughput, single-gene-calibrated dot blot assay, we developed to quantify leukocyte telomere length (LTL). In age-stratified analyses, shorter LTL was associated with AF predominantly in individuals younger than 70 years. In telomerase-deficient (TERT^(-/-)) mice with telomere dysfunction, higher AF inducibility, atrial...

Senescent cells accumulate with age and after exposure to various stresses, contributing to chronic diseases and cancer, effects largely driven by the senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP). Recent evidence indicates that a subset of senescent cells exhibits immunogenic properties. However, the extent to which immunogenicity depends on the cell type and the senescence inducer remains unclear. In this study, we evaluated the immunogenic properties of various human cell types induced to...

Brain aging is marked by neuronal loss, synaptic deterioration, neuroinflammation, and proteinopathies, all of which contribute to cognitive decline. Although systemic suppression of growth hormone (GH)/insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) signaling has been shown to extend lifespan and enhance cognitive function, the specific role of GH signaling in adipose tissue during brain aging remains unclear. In this study, we used aged (18-24 months) adipose-specific GH receptor knockout (Ad-GHRKO) mice...

Microbial communities profoundly influence host aging, yet how natural genetic variation determines microbiota-driven longevity remains unclear. By screening root-derived bacterial isolates across genetically diverse Caenorhabditis elegans strains, we identified striking phenotypic heterogeneity, ranging from lifespan extension to accelerated aging. Combining classical genetic analysis, quantitative trait locus (QTL) mapping and CRISPR-Cas9 allelic recapitulation, we identify skn-1 (Nrf2) and...

CONCLUSIONS: Hypertension was associated with an age-dependent decline in reported knee pain, poorer physical function, and more severe radiographic knee OA in females. These findings suggest hypertensive individuals may deviate from a progressive OA pain trajectory and contribute to discordance between joint damage and pain.

Cdc42, a small GTPase essential for cell polarity, often becomes hyperactive with age and promotes senescence in yeast and animal cells. Yet, the mechanisms driving its age-related upregulation remain unclear. Here, we show that in budding yeast, Cdc42 accumulates over successive cell divisions and that reducing its levels extends life span. Using microfluidics-assisted live-cell imaging and genetic analysis, we found that Cdc42 is distributed unevenly between mother and daughter cells during...

How does senescent cell heterogeneity vary across different cell types in the liver in aging, fibrosis, and cancer? In Cell Genomics, Karpova and Li et al. reveal cell-type- and context-specific senescent cell signatures, offering the community a valuable resource and providing the potential for future therapeutic innovation.

CONCLUSION: Current guidelines for older adults with multimorbidity or polypharmacy exhibit substantial weaknesses in methodological rigor, reporting completeness, and implementation feasibility. Synthesis based on the Ariadne principles revealed an imbalanced pattern of recommendations, with a predominant focus on medication safety rather than patient-centered and longitudinal care management. Future guideline development should strengthen methodological processes, systematically integrate...

Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) continuously circulates through the brain and surrounding tissues to remove metabolic waste, a process that becomes less efficient with ageing and in neurodegenerative disease. Visualizing this drainage in living animals has been difficult because existing imaging tools either lack depth, require radioactive tracers, or are too slow to capture dynamic flow. Here, we show that whole-body photoacoustic computed tomography (PACT) enables three-dimensional, real-time...

"Inflammaging", the chronic increase in inflammatory signaling with age, remains poorly understood in hematopoietic aging. Here, we identify the innate immune RNA sensor melanoma differentiation-associated protein 5 (MDA5) as an important factor of hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) aging. Aged Mda5^(-/-) mice exhibit reduced HSC accumulation and myeloid bias. Importantly, aged Mda5^(-/-) HSCs retain greater quiescence and superior repopulation capacity in noncompetitive transplants compared to...

This study investigated whether higher cardiorespiratory fitness (VO₂peak) is associated with better cerebral vascular and metabolic health-specifically cerebral blood flow (CBF), cerebrovascular reactivity (CVR), cerebral metabolic rate of oxygen (CMRO₂), and oxygen extraction fraction (OEF) across healthy older adults and patients with coronary artery disease (CAD). Thirty-seven healthy adults (65.3 ± 8.3 years old) and 35 CAD patients (66.4 ± 9.3 years old) underwent calibrated fMRI using...

Although population aging is a global worldwide phenomenon, it is most pronounced in European Union countries. An unhealthy ageing population not only places a heavy burden on healthcare, but also hinders sustainable socio-economic development. Supporting healthy aging can be achieved through evidence-based strategies aimed at reducing avoidable mortality and interventions that promote these strategies. Our study is based on a secondary analysis of Eurostat data for 2022 to describe the extent...

Alterations in biological rhythms are a common feature of aging, and disruption of circadian rhythms can exacerbate age-associated pathologies. The retina is critical for detecting light for both vision and for transmitting time-of-day information to the brain, synchronizing rhythms throughout the body. Disruption of circadian rhythms by manipulating the molecular clock leads to premature retinal degeneration in flies and mice, and gene expression rhythms are altered in models of age-associated...

Frailty emerges as the intermediate stage preceding disability, but there is a gap in molecular signatures for early detection of subclinical cellular changes, which could help predict frailty onset or the effectiveness of interventions. In this randomized, controlled study, we assessed phenotypical and functional changes in frail individuals before and after a 6-month multidomain lifestyle intervention (nutritional supplement and supervised exercise) vs habitual care. We also analyzed...

Heat hormesis describes a biphasic, dose-dependent response in which low levels of heat stress induce beneficial effects, such as enhanced lifespan and stress resilience. This phenomenon is commonly studied in Caenorhabditis elegans using regimens that involve mild heat stress priming, followed by a recovery period and subsequent stress challenge or lifespan measurement. The concept is conserved across species and has gained renewed interest due to its potential relevance to therapeutic...

Frailty is a significant health issue among older adults. Oxidative stress (OS), indicated by elevated malondialdehyde (MDA) levels and reduced superoxide dismutase (SOD) activity, is implicated in age-related diseases. This study aims to explore the relationship between OS biomarkers, MDA and SOD, and frailty among older adults. This study investigated the association between MDA, SOD, and frailty in 3181 older adults from the Chinese Longitudinal Healthy Longevity Survey (CLHLS). Frailty was...

CONCLUSIONS: Moderate and high-intensity PA were associated with lower odds of falls, with important effect modification by cognitive status and health symptoms. These findings suggest that fall prevention strategies should account for cognitive function and symptom burden when promoting physical activity in older adults.

CONCLUSIONS: Bridging the willingness-utilization gap requires systemic reform across policy, organizational, service, and individual levels. Priorities include expanding LTCI eligibility, formalizing volunteer roles within interdisciplinary teams, establishing navigation mechanisms for unmet "grey-zone" needs, and enhancing digital literacy through hybrid information systems. By extending Haggerty's continuity framework beyond clinical care, this study illustrates how volunteers can be...

CONCLUSIONS: An in-home mobile integrated health (MIH) transitional care program for frail older adults after hospital discharge was associated with lower 30-day readmission rates. These findings highlight MIH as a promising model to support aging in place and suggest its potential value for adoption within age-friendly health systems.

Mitochondrial quality control is tightly associated with aging-related neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), and frontotemporal dementia (FTD). Previous studies reported that ALS/FTD-associated protein p62 drives "mitochondrial clustering" (perinuclear clustering of fragmented and swollen mitochondria) during PINK1/Parkin-mediated mitophagy, but the underlying molecular mechanism, especially the precise role of p62 in...