Cellular and molecular longevity pathways: the old and the new

Social perception of young adults prolongs the lifespan of aged Drosophila

Lifespan is modulated at distinct levels by multiple factors, including genetic backgrounds, the environment, behavior traits, metabolic status, and more interestingly, sensory perceptions. However, the effects of social perception between individuals living in the same space remain less clear. Here, we used the Drosophila model to study the influences of social perception on the lifespan of aged fruit flies. We found the lifespan of aged Drosophila is markedly prolonged after being co-housed with young adults of the same gender. Moreover, the changes of lifespan were affected by several experimental contexts: (1) the ratios of aged and young adults co-housed, (2) the chronological ages of two populations, and (3) the integrity of sensory modalities. Together, we hypothesize the chemical/physical stimuli derived from the interacting young adults are capable of interfering with the physiology and behavior of aged flies, ultimately leading to the alteration of lifespan.

DNA damage responses in ageing

Ageing appears to be a nearly universal feature of life, ranging from unicellular microorganisms to humans. Longevity depends on the maintenance of cellular functionality, and an organism's ability to respond to stress has been linked to functional maintenance and longevity. Stress response pathways might indeed become therapeutic targets of therapies aimed at extending the healthy lifespan. Various progeroid syndromes have been linked to genome instability, indicating an important causal role of DNA damage accumulation in the ageing process and the development of age-related pathologies. Recently, non-cell-autonomous mechanisms including the systemic consequences of cellular senescence have been implicated in regulating organismal ageing. We discuss here the role of cellular and systemic mechanisms of ageing and their role in ageing-associated diseases.

Longevity and sexual maturity vary across species with number of cortical neurons, and humans are no exception

Maximal longevity of endotherms has long been considered to increase with decreasing specific metabolic rate, and thus with increasing body mass. Using a dataset of over 700 species, here I show that maximal longevity, age at sexual maturity, and postmaturity longevity across bird and mammalian species instead correlate primarily, and universally, with the number of cortical brain neurons. Correlations with metabolic rate and body mass are entirely explained by clade-specific relationships between these variables and numbers of cortical neurons across species. Importantly, humans reach sexual maturity and subsequently live just as long as expected for their number of cortical neurons, which eliminates the basis for earlier theories of protracted childhood and prolonged post-menopause longevity as derived human characteristics. Longevity might increase together with numbers of cortical neurons through their impact on three main factors: delay of sexual maturity, which postpones the onset of aging; lengthening of the period of viable physiological integration and adaptation, which increases postmaturity longevity; and improved cognitive capabilities that benefit survival of the self and of longer-lived progeny, and are conducive to prolonged learning and cultural transmission through increased generational overlap. Importantly, the findings indicate that theories of aging and neurodegenerative diseases should take absolute time lived besides relative "age" into consideration.

Thyroid Hormones Play Role in Sarcopenia and Myopathies

Skeletal muscle maintains posture and enables movement by converting chemical energy into mechanical energy, further contributing to basal energy metabolism. Thyroid hormones (thyroxine, or T4, and triiodothyronine, or T3) participate in contractile function, metabolic processes, myogenesis and regeneration of skeletal muscle. T3 classically modulates gene expression after binding to thyroid hormone nuclear receptors. Thyroid hormone effects depend on nuclear receptor occupancy, which is directly related to intracellular T3 levels. Sarcolemmal thyroid hormone levels are regulated by their transport across the plasma membrane by specific transporters, as well as by the action of deiodinases types 2 and 3, which can activate or inactivate T4 and T3. Thyroid hormone level oscillations have been associated with the worsening of many myopathies such as myasthenia gravis, Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) and rhabdomyolysis. During aging skeletal muscle show a decrease in mass and quality, known as sarcopenia. There is increasing evidence that thyroid hormones could have a role in the sarcopenic process. Therefore, in this review, we aim to discuss the main effects of thyroid hormones in skeletal muscular aging processes and myopathy-related pathologies.

Exposure to the environmentally-persistent insecticide chlordecone induces detoxification genes and causes polyp bail-out in the coral P. damicornis

Marine ecosystems are both stressed and threatened by pesticides that are used on land. Nevertheless, research on the impact of pesticides on coral reefs and the underlying mechanisms is still in its infancy. The insecticide chlordecone is a persistent organic pollutant with carcinogenic effects in rats and mice. Chlordecone has been detected in diverse marine organisms in the Caribbean, but unexpectedly, also in French Polynesia. We combined transcriptomic and morphologic analyses of analyses the response of the coral Pocillopora damicornis to chlordecone stress. We compared chlordecone stress with thermal stress to determine a chlordecone-specific response. We found eight transcripts related to the P450-1A or P450-3A families that were specifically overexpressed in response to chlordecone. There was also sequential overexpression of transcripts involved in apoptosis and degradation of cellular matrix proteins. Finally, we report the first observation of chlordecone-induced P. damicornis polyp bail-out. Altogether, these results strongly suggest that apoptosis and expression of genes belonging to the cathepsin family are sequentially regulated processes leading to coenosarc dissociation and loss.

Differential adiponectin signalling couples ER stress with lipid metabolism to modulate ageing in C. elegans

The metabolic and endocrine functions of adipose tissue and the ability of organisms to cope with cellular stress have a direct impact on physiological ageing and the aetiology of various diseases such as obesity-related pathologies and cancer. The endocrine effects of adipose tissue are mediated by secreted adipokines, which modulate metabolic processes and influence related maladies. Although a plethora of molecules and signaling pathways associate ageing with proteotoxic stress and cellular metabolism, our understanding of how these pathways interconnect to coordinate organismal physiology remains limited. We dissected the mechanisms linking adiponectin signalling pathways and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) proteotoxic stress responses that individually or synergistically affect longevity in C. elegans. Animals deficient for the adiponectin receptor PAQR-1 respond to ER stress, by rapidly activating the canonical ER unfolded protein response (UPRER) pathway, which is primed in these animals under physiological conditions by specific stress defence transcription factors. PAQR-1 loss enhances survival and promotes longevity under ER stress and reduced insulin/IGF-1 signalling. PAQR-1 engages UPRER, autophagy and lipase activity to modulate lipid metabolism during ageing. Our findings demonstrate that moderating adiponectin receptor -1 activity extends lifespan under stress, and directly implicate adiponectin signalling as a coupler between proteostasis and lipid metabolism during ageing.

Small heat shock proteins in ageing and age-related diseases

Small heat shock proteins (sHSPs) are gatekeepers of cellular homeostasis across species, preserving proteome integrity under stressful conditions. Nonetheless, recent evidence suggests that sHSPs are more than molecular chaperones with merely auxiliary role. In contrast, sHSPs have emerged as central lifespan determinants, and their malfunction has been associated with the manifestation of neurological disorders, cardiovascular disease and cancer malignancies. In this review, we focus on the role of sHSPs in ageing and age-associated diseases and highlight the most prominent paradigms, where impairment of sHSP function has been implicated in human pathology.

Spirulina Protects against Hepatic Inflammation in Aging: An Effect Related to the Modulation of the Gut Microbiota?

Aging predisposes to hepatic dysfunction and inflammation that can contribute to the development of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Spirulina, a cyanobacterium used as a food additive or food supplement, has been shown to impact immune function. We have tested the potential hepatoprotective effect of a Spirulina in aged mice and to determine whether these effects can be related to a modulation of the gut microbiota. Old mice have been fed a standard diet supplemented with or without 5% Spirulina for six weeks. Among several changes of gut microbiota composition, an increase in Roseburia and Lactobacillus proportions occurs upon Spirulina treatment. Interestingly, parameters related to the innate immunity are upregulated in the small intestine of Spirulina-treated mice. Furthermore, the supplementation with Spirulina reduces several hepatic inflammatory and oxidative stress markers that are upregulated in old mice versus young mice. We conclude that the oral administration of a Spirulina is able to modulate the gut microbiota and to activate the immune system in the gut, a mechanism that may be involved in the improvement of the hepatic inflammation in aged mice. Those data open the way to new therapeutic tools in the management of immune alterations in aging, based on gut microbe-host interactions.

Basic science and pathogenesis of ageing with HIV: potential mechanisms and biomarkers

: The increased prevalence of age-related comorbidities and mortality is worrisome in ageing HIV-infected patients. Here, we aim to analyse the different ageing mechanisms with regard to HIV infection. Ageing results from the time-dependent accumulation of random cellular damage. Epigenetic modifications and mitochondrial DNA haplogroups modulate ageing. In antiretroviral treatment-controlled patients, epigenetic clock appears to be advanced, and some haplogroups are associated with HIV infection severity. Telomere shortening is enhanced in HIV-infected patients because of HIV and some nucleoside analogue reverse transcriptase inhibitors. Mitochondria-related oxidative stress and mitochondrial DNA mutations are increased during ageing and also by some nucleoside analogue reverse transcriptase inhibitors. Overall, increased inflammation or 'inflammageing' is a major driver of ageing and could result from cell senescence with secreted proinflammatory mediators, altered gut microbiota, and coinfections. In HIV-infected patients, the level of inflammation and innate immunity activation is enhanced and related to most comorbidities and to mortality. This status could result, in addition to age, from the virus itself or viral protein released from reservoirs, from HIV-enhanced gut permeability and dysbiosis, from antiretroviral treatment, from frequent cytomegalovirus and hepatitis C virus coinfections, and also from personal and environmental factors, as central fat accumulation or smoking. Adaptive immune activation and immunosenescence are associated with comorbidities and mortality in the general population but are less predictive in HIV-infected patients. Biomarkers to evaluate ageing in HIV-infected patients are required. Numerous systemic or cellular inflammatory, immune activation, oxidative stress, or senescence markers can be tested in serum or peripheral blood mononuclear cells. The novel European Study to Establish Biomarkers of Human Ageing MARK-AGE algorithm, evaluating the biological age, is currently assessed in HIV-infected patients and reveals an advanced biological age. Some enhanced inflammatory or innate immune activation markers are interesting but still not validated for the patient's follow-up. To be able to assess patients' biological age is an important objective to improve their healthspan.

Accelerated pathway evolution in mouse-like rodents involves cell cycle control

Rodents include both the cancer-susceptible short-lived mouse and the two unrelated cancer-resistant long-lived mole-rats. In this work, their genomes were analyzed with the goal to reveal pathways enriched in genes, which are more similar between the mole-rats than between the mouse and the naked mole-rat. The pathways related to cell cycle control were prominent. They include external signal transduction and all cell cycle stages. There are several stem cell pathways among them. The other enriched pathways involve ubiquitin-dependent protein degradation, immunity, mRNA splicing, and apoptosis. The ubiquitin-dependent protein degradation is a core of network of enriched pathways. However, this phenomenon is not specific for the mouse and the mole-rats. The other muroid species show features similar to the mouse, whereas the non-muroid rodents and the human show features similar to the mole-rats. The higher ratio of non-synonymous to synonymous nucleotide substitutions (dN/dS) indicates the accelerated evolution of revealed pathways in the muroid rodents (except the blind mole-rat). Paradoxically, the dN/dS averaged over the whole genome is lower in the muroids, i.e., the purifying selection is generally stronger in them. In practical sense, these data suggest caveat for using muroid rodents (mouse, rat, and hamsters) as biomedical models of human conditions involving cell cycle and show the network of pathways where muroid genes are most different (compared with non-muroid) from human genes. The guinea pig is emphasized as a more suitable rodent model for biomedical research involving cell cycle.

Environmentally induced changes in correlated responses to selection reveal variable pleiotropy across a complex genetic network

Selection in novel environments can lead to a coordinated evolutionary response across a suite of characters. Environmental conditions can also potentially induce changes in the genetic architecture of complex traits, which in turn could alter the pattern of the multivariate response to selection. We describe a factorial selection experiment using the nematode Caenorhabditis remanei in which two different stress-related phenotypes (heat and oxidative stress resistance) were selected under three different environmental conditions. The pattern of covariation in the evolutionary response between phenotypes or across environments differed depending on the environment in which selection occurred, including asymmetrical responses to selection in some cases. These results indicate that variation in pleiotropy across the stress response network is highly sensitive to the external environment. Our findings highlight the complexity of the interaction between genes and environment that influences the ability of organisms to acclimate to novel environments. They also make clear the need to identify the underlying genetic basis of genetic correlations in order understand how patterns of pleiotropy are distributed across complex genetic networks.