Will revitalizing old blood slow aging?

Recent studies have shown that young blood has a rejuvenating effect when injected into the body of an elderly person. An aging heart beats harder, muscles grow stronger, and thoughts sharper.

Many scientists are looking for young blood elements that can be captured or replicated and put into tablets.

But what if the best way to reap the benefits of young blood is simply to rejuvenate the blood-making system?

“Aging blood systemDr. Emmanuel Pasguet, director of the Columbia Stem Cell Initiative, which studies how blood changes, said: “People whose blood system is He’s 40 He’s 70 may have longer, if not longer, healthy lives.”

Rejuvenating the blood of older people may now be within reach, based on recent findings from Passegué’s lab published in . nature cell biology.

Passegué, along with graduate student Carl Mitchell, found that an anti-inflammatory drug already approved for use in rheumatoid arthritis can turn back time in mice and reverse some of the effects of age on the hematopoietic system. .

“These results show that such strategies hold promise for maintaining healthier blood production in older adults,” Mitchell says.

rejuvenate blood stem cells

Researchers identified the drug only after comprehensively examining the stem cells that make all blood cells and the niche where they reside in the center of bones.

All blood cells in the body are made by a small number of stem cells in the bone marrow. Over time, these hematopoietic stem cells begin to change. Hematopoietic stem cells produce fewer red blood cells (leading to anemia), fewer immune cells (increase risk of infection and hinder vaccination efforts), and have problems maintaining genomic integrity. (which can lead to blood cancer).

In a paper published in 2021 Journal of Experimental MedicinePassegué and her team first tried to rejuvenate old hematopoietic stem cells in mice through exercise and a calorie-restricted diet, commonly thought to slow the aging process. Neither worked. Transplanting old stem cells into young bone marrow has also failed. Even young blood was ineffective in rejuvenating old blood stem cells.

Mitchell and Passegué next took a closer look at the stem cell environment, the bone marrow. “Blood stem cells live in a niche, and we thought that what happens in this specialized local environment could be a big part of the problem,” says Mitchell.

With techniques developed in the Passegué lab that allow for an in-depth examination of the bone marrow environment, researchers have discovered that the aging niche is exacerbated and overwhelmed by inflammation, leading to blood stem cell dysfunction.

A single inflammatory signal emitted from the site of injury bone marrow The niche, IL-1B, has been important in promoting these aging functions and blocking them with drugs. Anakinra Significantly returned blood stem cells to a younger, healthier state.

When IL-1B was prevented from exerting its inflammatory effects throughout the life of the animal, it produced even more youthful effects on both the niche and blood system.

Researchers are now trying to find out whether the same process is activated in humans and whether rejuvenating the stem cell niche early in life, at middle age, would be a more effective strategy. I’m here.

Meanwhile, “treating older patients with anti-inflammatory drugs that inhibit IL-1B function should help maintain healthier blood production,” said Passegué, whose findings could lead to clinical trials. I look forward to connecting with you.

“We know that bone tissue starts deteriorating in your 50s. What happens when you reach middle age? Why do niches fail first?” Passeghe says. “Only with a deep understanding of the molecule can we identify approaches that truly slow aging.”

In many societies, life expectancy has increased by more than 30 years in the last 100 years. Linda Freed, M.D., M.P.H., Dean of the Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, said: Butler Columbia Center for Aging. “This must include research to understand the mechanisms of normal aging and how to fully exploit the enormous opportunities for creating health.” longevity for all. ”