2024.3.26
Relationship between abrupt aging and cells
With the passage of time, the brain and body will gradually become slower and slower, which is an unavoidable natural aging phenomenon. Although aging is inevitable, if you take care of your body before it is too late and develop good lifestyle habits, you will be able to significantly reduce the speed of aging.
［Scary abrupt aging］
International studies have pointed out that there are three age groups in life that will experience rapid aging like falling off a cliff: at 34 years old, loss of collagen and loss of the fullness and elasticity of the skin at a young age; at 60 years old, hormonal changes and deterioration of blood vessels, and some groups are affected by long-term chronic diseases and inflammation, which affects the activity of the cells; and at the age of 78 years old, the narrowing of the blood vessels or the degree of calcification will be even more serious, and the density of bone will be reduced, which will make the bones more prone to osteoporosis.
There is also a significant increase in disease-related proteins between the ages of 60 and 78, which can lead to Alzheimer's disease if they accumulate in the brain and cardiovascular disease if they accumulate in the heart. As the body's immune cells are unable to remove these metabolic wastes as they age, they continue to build up between cells, resulting in an increased risk of cytotoxicity and cellular degenerative diseases over time.
［The time for cell therapy is long overdue］
Looking back at 2018, Taiwan's healthcare entered a new era with the promulgation of new regulations (Regulations Governing the Application or Use of Specific Medical Techniques or Examinations, or Medical Devices), which opened the door to cell therapy; among them, “Autologous Peripheral Blood Stem Cell Transplantation” and “Immune Cell Therapy” became two of the most prominent technologies, which represents the government's recognition of cell therapy and is a big step forward for the medical community towards a more advanced and personalized direction.
［Immune cells and stem cells complement each other］
Simply put, immune cells play a key role in protecting the body from bacteria, aging cells, mutant cells and cancer cells. Stem cells, on the other hand, are the core force that helps repair and restore normal cell differentiation. The two are like the body's security forces and economic construction units, each playing its own role and complementing the other.
［Breaks the aging cycle, cleanses, then repairs］
As we age, senescent cells secrete SASP, a signaling molecule that promotes inflammation, which contaminates normal surrounding tissues and expands the scope and scale of inflammation, which can build up into a variety of diseases over time The inflammation caused by SASP sends a distress signal to the immune system, which gathers immune cells at the site of the inflammation and acts like a scavenger to clear out the bacteria, aging cells, mutant cells and cancer cells. After the abnormal cells are removed, the stem cells will regenerate new cells to replace the abnormal cells removed by the scavengers, so that the cells can return to a healthy track and the tissues and organs can function normally. This process is also known as the so-called “aging -> removal -> repair and regeneration cycle”.
Reference：
[1] Vimar/RAP1GDS1 promotes acceleration of brain aging after flies and mice reach middle age. Communications Biology volume 6, Article number: 420 (2023)
[2] Clonal dynamics of haematopoiesis across the human lifespan. Nature volume 606, pages343–350 (2022)
[3] Undulating changes in human plasma proteome profiles across the lifespan. Nature Medicine volume 25, pages1843–1850 (2019)