age-related inflammation tagged posts

Chronic, low-grade inflammation in the body—a phenomenon known as “inflammaging” because it increases with age—has been linked to many of today’s leading causes of illness and death, including cancer, heart disease, metabolic conditions and neurodegenerative diseases. But scientists have struggled to understand what causes inflammaging or how to reverse its effects.

Researchers from the Keck School of Medicine of USC have identified the thymus, a small organ behind the breastbone that plays a central role in immune system development, as a key player in inflammaging. They discovered that thymulin, a hormone produced by the organ, keeps inflammation under control.

As we age, thymulin decreases and inflammation increases, allowing diseases like cancer to progress...

Research led by the Max Planck Institute for Biology of Aging in Cologne reports that misincorporation of ribonucleotides into mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) initiates an inflammatory cascade.

Mitochondria support cell survival through metabolic and signaling roles. Conversely, their disruption has been associated with inflammation, cell death and disease.

Innate immune activation through the cGAS-STING-TBK1 pathway can move a cell from short-term defense to a chronic state of alarm. cGAS-STING activity is linked to autoimmune and inflammatory diseases and contributes to senescence and aging, intertwining immune signaling with tissue decline.

Senescent cells then adopt a secretor...