A new research paper was published on the cover of Aging (Aging-US) Volume 15, Issue 14, entitled, “Human senescent fibroblasts trigger progressive lung fibrosis in mice.”

Cell senescence has recently emerged as a potentially relevant pathogenic mechanism in fibrosing interstitial lung diseases (f-ILDs), particularly in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. In a new study, researchers Fernanda Hernandez-Gonzalez, Neus Prats, Valentina Ramponi, José Alberto López-Domínguez, Kathleen Meyer, Mònica Aguilera, María Isabel Muñoz Martín, Daniel Martínez, Alvar Agusti, Rosa Faner, Jacobo Sellarés, Federico Pietrocola, and Manuel Serrano from Hospital Clinic Barcelona, The Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology (BIST), Instituto de Investigaciones Biomédicas August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red Enfermedades Respiratorias (CIBERES), University of Barcelona, Karolinska Institute, Catalan Institution for Research and Advanced Studies (ICREA), and Altos Labs hypothesized that senescent human fibroblasts may suffice to trigger a progressive fibrogenic reaction in the lung. 

“Here we: (1) explored this hypothesis in vivo; (2) investigated the potential underlying biological mechanisms in vitro; and (3) studied the effects of one experimental senolytic compound (navitoclax) and two anti-fibrotic drugs currently used in the treatment of IPF in humans (nintedanib and pirfenidone), both in vivo and in vitro.”

To address this, senescent human lung fibroblasts, or their secretome (SASP), were instilled into the lungs of immunodeficient mice. The researchers found that human senescent fibroblasts engraft in the lungs of immunodeficient mice and trigger progressive lung fibrosis associated to increasing levels of mouse senescent cells, whereas non-senescent fibroblasts do not trigger fibrosis. They also found that the SASP of human senescent fibroblasts is pro-senescence and pro-fibrotic both in vitro when added to mouse recipient cells and in vivo when delivered into the lungs of mice, whereas the conditioned medium (CM) from non-senescent fibroblasts lacks these activities. Finally, navitoclax, nintedanib and pirfenidone were found to ameliorate lung fibrosis induced by senescent human fibroblasts in mice, while only navitoclax displayed senolytic activity. 

“We conclude that human senescent fibroblasts, through their bioactive secretome, trigger a progressive fibrogenic reaction in the lungs of immunodeficient mice that includes the induction of paracrine senescence in the cells of the host, supporting the concept that senescent cells actively contribute to disease progression in patients with f-ILDs.”

DOI - https://doi.org/10.18632/aging.204825

Corresponding authors - Manuel Serrano - mserrano@altoslabs.com, and Federico Pietrocola - federico.pietrocola@ki.se

Keywords - aging, mouse model, cellular senescence, pulmonary fibrosis, antifibrotics, senolytic

About Aging-US

Launched in 2009, Aging-US publishes papers of general interest and biological significance in all fields of aging research and age-related diseases, including cancer—and now, with a special focus on COVID-19 vulnerability as an age-dependent syndrome. Topics in Aging-US go beyond traditional gerontology, including, but not limited to, cellular and molecular biology, human age-related diseases, pathology in model organisms, signal transduction pathways (e.g., p53, sirtuins, and PI-3K/AKT/mTOR, among others), and approaches to modulating these signaling pathways.

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Aging (Aging-US)

Human Senescent Fibroblasts Cause Lung Fibrosis in Mice

BUFFALO, NY- November 7, 2023 – A new #researchpaper was #published in Aging (listed by MEDLINE/PubMed as "Aging (Albany NY)" and "Aging-US" by Web of Science) Volume 15, Issue 20, entitled, “Deciphering reproductive aging in women using a NOD/SCID mouse model for distinct physiological ovarian phenotypes.”

Female fertility is negatively correlated with age, with noticeable declines in oocyte quantity and quality until menopause. To understand this physiological process and evaluate human approaches for treating age-related infertility, preclinical studies in appropriate animal models are needed. In this new study, researchers María Marchante, Noelia Ramirez-Martin, Anna Buigues, Jessica Martinez, Nuria Pellicer, Antonio Pellicer, and Sonia Herraiz from IVIRMA, University of Valencia and Instituto Investigación Sanitaria La Fe aimed to characterize an immunodeficient physiological aging mouse model displaying ovarian characteristics of different stages during women's reproductive life. 

“The main purpose of our study was to establish a physiological ovarian aging mouse model that could be employed to evaluate potential therapeutic interventions derived from human origin.”

NOD/SCID mice of different ages (8-, 28-, and 36–40-week-old) were employed to mimic ovarian phenotypes of young, Advanced Maternal Age (AMA), and old women (~18–20-, ~36–38-, and >45-years-old, respectively). Mice were stimulated, mated, and sacrificed to recover oocytes and embryos. Then, ovarian reserve, follicular growth, ovarian stroma, mitochondrial dysfunction, and proteomic profiles were assessed. Age-matched C57BL/6 mice were employed to cross-validate the reproductive outcomes.

The quantity and quality of oocytes were decreased in AMA and Old mice. These age-related effects associated spindle and chromosome abnormalities, along with decreased developmental competence to blastocyst stage. Old mice had less follicles, impaired follicle activation and growth, an ovarian stroma inconducive to growth, and increased mitochondrial dysfunctions. Proteomic analysis corroborated these histological findings. Based on that, NOD/SCID mice can be used to model different ovarian aging phenotypes and potentially test human anti-aging treatments.

“In summary, in this study we characterized the quality of the ovarian microenvironment and reproductive outcomes of an immunodeficient murine model of physiological ovarian aging by evaluating fertility outcomes, ovarian reserve and stroma, mitochondrial dysfunctions, and the ovarian proteome at different stages. This model adequately mimicked the characteristics of the reproductive stages in women, without external agents compromising folliculogenesis, or disrupting molecular mechanisms and ovarian function, which could mask the processes of physiological aging.”

DOI - https://doi.org/10.18632/aging.205086

Corresponding author - Sonia Herraiz - sonia_herraiz@iislafe.es

About Aging-US

Launched in 2009, Aging-US publishes papers of general interest and biological significance in all fields of aging research and age-related diseases, including cancer—and now, with a special focus on COVID-19 vulnerability as an age-dependent syndrome. Topics in Aging-US go beyond traditional gerontology, including, but not limited to, cellular and molecular biology, human age-related diseases, pathology in model organisms, signal transduction pathways (e.g., p53, sirtuins, and PI-3K/AKT/mTOR, among others), and approaches to modulating these signaling pathways.

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Deciphering Reproductive Aging in Women Using a NOD/SCID Mouse Model

BUFFALO, NY- November 28, 2023 – A new #editorial paper was #published in Oncotarget's Volume 14 on November 27, 2023, entitled, “The double-edge sword of CRISPR application for in vivo studies.”

In this new paper, researcher Martin K. Thomsen from Aarhus University begins his editorial by discussing a hallmark paper that was published a decade ago by Platt et al. on the in vivo application of Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats (CRISPR) to generate cancer in different organs of mice. 

This hallmark paper outlines the advancement of delivering sgRNA’s to the target tissue to create loss or gain of function mutations without the need for timely intercrossing of genetic mouse strains. Furthermore, the study showed that multiplexing was possible, thereby enabling the method to target multiple sites simultaneously [1]. It was foreseen that this technology would change the way mouse models of cancer were generated, but even after 10 years, only few studies have relied on this methodology [2]. 

“The double-edged sword of in vivo application of CRISPR is the imperfection of mutations generated in the target sequence.” 

As CRISPR introduces mutations, they do not always occur, resulting in cells being present without the desired mutation. This is further complicated by the different types of indels, which can result in a functional protein with only changes in a few amino acids, without the introduction of a premature stop codon. This introduces clone-to-clone variation and results in tumors with a different mutation profile [3, 4]. However, this is also an advantage of CRISPR for generating in vivo cancer models as natural selection will occur, resulting in a cancer Darwinian evolution.

“Altogether, the in vivo application of CRISPR will become more common, even though the technique has challenges, it will only become more feasible in the future, allowing more researchers to apply this technology.”

DOI - https://doi.org/10.18632/oncotarget.28459

Correspondence to - Martin K. Thomsen - mkt@biomed.au.dk

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Keywords - cancer, CRISPR, in vivo, mouse models, Adenoassociated virus

About Oncotarget

Oncotarget (a primarily oncology-focused, peer-reviewed, open access journal) aims to maximize research impact through insightful peer-review; eliminate borders between specialties by linking different fields of oncology, cancer research and biomedical sciences; and foster application of basic and clinical science.

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Oncotarget

The Double-Edge Sword of CRISPR Application for In Vivo Studies

Oncotarget is a primarily oncology-focused, peer-reviewed, open access journal. Papers are published continuously within yearly volumes in their final and complete form and then quickly released to Pubmed.

Oncotarget is now indexed by MEDLINE, PubMed and PMC/PubMed.

Read about the Oncotarget Scientific Integrity Process: https://www.oncotarget.com/scientific_integrity/

Aging-US is dedicated to advancing our understanding of the biological mechanisms that drive aging and the development of age-related diseases. Our mission is to serve as a platform for high-quality research that uncovers the cellular, molecular, and systemic processes underlying aging, and translates these insights into strategies to extend healthspan and delay the onset of chronic disease.

Read about the Aging (Aging-US) Scientific Integrity Process: https://aging-us.com/scientific-integrity

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