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Zhang et al. describe a neural circuit that reduces lifespan when food-restricted worms smell food. This circuit signals the intestine via octopamine, the invertebrate homolog of norepinephrine, to activate AMPKα. Importantly, norepinephrine signaling also activates AMPKα in mammalian cells, suggesting a conserved mechanism.
The authors review how the blood–brain barrier, a regulatory interface that controls interactions between the blood and central nervous system, changes during healthy aging, and discuss how some of these changes may predispose to age-associated diseases.
In this issue of Nature Aging, Janbek et al. report results of a registry-based cohort study in Denmark where older people with incident dementia had higher risk of infections, especially in the nervous system. They call for interventions for better health and quality of life for people living with dementia.
Mitochondrial dysfunction can result in numerous diseases, including neurodegenerative disorders. CBP/p300, a histone acetyltransferase, has been uncovered as a key factor in the response to mitochondrial perturbation. It controls transcription of mitochondrial stress response genes, promotes innate immunity and enhances longevity.
Accelerated aging and cellular senescence are driving forces of pulmonary fibrosis. A novel anti-aging therapeutic approach combats lung fibrosis by targeting senescent fibrogenic cells for apoptosis.
Despite scarce evidence, ageism is often cited as a social factor contributing to elder mistreatment. This Perspective examines the limited research linking these issues and proposes a model and research agenda to further understand the relationship.
An extensive multiomic resource using human monocytes reveals large-scale remodeling of DNA methylation landscapes in healthy aging and accelerated or pathological aging contexts. This work provides an invaluable resource with important implications for the study of age-related changes in immune function.
The human gut microbiota is comprised of a vast assortment of trillions of microbial cells belonging to hundreds of different species, differing substantially between individual hosts. A new study has systematically investigated the relationship of host age to gut microbes in a geographically restricted and ethnically homogeneous human cohort, revealing key differences across ages and sexes.
Chambers et al. show that senescent skin cells in older adults provoke monocyte-dependent local inflammation in response to injury, which hampers T cell recall responses to viruses. Importantly, they further show that this phenomenon can be blocked pharmacologically to boost adaptive immunity.
Accurate blood tests for Alzheimer’s disease (AD) are critical tools that have the potential to revolutionize dementia research, clinical trials and clinical care. Models combining blood-based biomarkers that represent multiple aspects of AD brain pathology with key individual level factors may improve prediction of AD dementia.
Linda Fried and colleagues argue that physical frailty reflects the dysregulation of a complex dynamical system underpinning health and resilience, and discuss the implications for new prevention and treatment approaches.
In this Perspective, Rando and Wyss-Coray discuss recent advances in the field of the biology of aging, focusing on new concepts related to the processes of cell and tissue aging and how they impact the healthspan and lifespan of an individual.
Intermittent and periodic fasting are emerging as important interventions with the potential to extend longevity and healthspan. This Review discusses how they affect longevity and healthspan in model organisms and humans, their connection to major nutrient-sensing signaling pathways and the importance of refeeding.