Immunological therapy for senescence
Scientists have discovered a new mechanism to delay aging.
Dead cells in our body contribute to aging and are responsible for many diseases, this new treatment can put an end to them. Researchers at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) have discovered a method that boosts the natural killer T (NKT) cells of our immune system so that they can kill the cells responsible for the symptoms of aging.
Many scientists consider aging to be just another disease. Just as we seek treatment for diabetes or a cold, getting old is a pathology that could be solved in a few years. Senescence is the process that some cells undergo when their DNA is damaged and they cannot activate their self-destruction process.
These cells remain in our organism as if they were zombies and contribute to aging and the development of age-related diseases such as Alzheimer's, diabetes, or some types of cancer.
Our body has a natural defense against this phenomenon. NKTs are responsible for monitoring and eliminating other cells that the body considers foreign, including senescent cells. The problem is that NKTs become less active over time and are no longer able to do their job efficiently.
“Finding ways to stimulate this natural surveillance system offers an alternative to senolytic therapies, which to date have been the primary approach to removing senescent cells. It could be a boon to a field that has struggled with how to systemically administer these senolytics without serious side effects.”
The UCSF team has published a paper in the medical journal 'Med' in which they describe how lipid antigens can be used to reactivate NKTs so that they continue to eliminate senescent cells from the body. This method has been tested in mice with obesity and pulmonary fibrosis. With the former, it was found that glucose levels improved significantly, while in the latter a reduction in the number of deteriorated cells was observed and they were able to live longer.
“The iNKT cells have two attributes that make them an especially appealing drug target. First, they all have the same receptor, which does not appear on any other cell in the body, so they can be primed without also activating other types of immune cells. Second, they operate within a natural negative feedback loop that returns them to a dormant state after a period of activity.”
The study also demonstrates that this technique is effective with human senescent cells, at least in 'in Vitro' experiments. The researchers are now looking to initiate human clinical trials and try to bring their discovery to market.