Editor's Summary
16 August 2007
Cancer and ageing
The peculiar form of immortality displayed by cancer cells and the ageing process that contributes to our mortality would seem to be opposites. But remarkably, the underlying biology of cancerous cells and ageing have converged. Genomic instability, telomere function and autophagy feature in papers on both cancer and ageing. Connections have emerged between tumorigenesis and cell senescence. And mitochondrial metabolism is key to both phenomena. Finkel et al. present a historical perspective of the common biology of cancer and ageing, from the first realization that human cancer cells — HeLa cells — could divide continuously in culture to the dawn of the systems biology approach.
Review: The common biology of cancer and ageing
Toren Finkel, Manuel Serrano & Maria A. Blasco
doi:10.1038/nature05985
