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Zombie Cells May Drive Aging — Scientists Target the Body's Cleanup Crew
Key Takeaways
- Senescent "zombie" cells are damaged cells that stop dividing but refuse to die, lingering in tissues and releasing inflammatory signals.
- Macrophages normally detect "eat me" proteins on dying cells and clear them away, but this cleanup becomes less effective with age.
- Senescence can be triggered by oxidative stress, radiation and ordinary cell division, which trims DNA with each copy.
- One treatment strategy aims to kill senescent cells directly; another aims to rejuvenate the immune cells that clear them.
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DT Editorial Team··via livescience.com