Medical

Arthritis drug mimics "young blood" transfusions to reverse aging in mice

Arthritis drug mimics "young blood" transfusions to reverse aging in mice
Scientists have used an existing arthritis drug to rejuvenate the blood stem cells of elderly mice
Scientists have used an existing arthritis drug to rejuvenate the blood stem cells of elderly mice
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Scientists have used an existing arthritis drug to rejuvenate the blood stem cells of elderly mice
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Scientists have used an existing arthritis drug to rejuvenate the blood stem cells of elderly mice

In what sounds like dystopian sci-fi, researchers have recently shown that infusions of youthful blood can improve the health of older people. A new study has found that an existing arthritis drug can effectively rejuvenate blood stem cells, mimicking the benefits of youthful blood transfusions.

From Silicon Valley to Mad Max, the idea of powerful older people harvesting blood from the young pops up throughout pop culture, but it’s not purely fiction. Scientists have experimented by giving elderly mice blood transfusions from young mice, and found that it improved cognitive abilities, increased lifespan and delayed disease.

But the benefits of transfusions are transient, only treating the symptoms. So for the new study, researchers at Columbia University, Cambridge and UC San Francisco investigated how to rejuvenate the entire blood production system.

“An aging blood system, because it’s a vector for a lot of proteins, cytokines, and cells, has a lot of bad consequences for the organism,” said Emmanuelle Passegué, corresponding author of the study. “A 70-year-old with a 40-year-old blood system could have a longer healthspan, if not a longer lifespan.”

Blood cells are produced by stem cells located in the bone marrow, and the team started by exploring the environment, or “niche”, in which these stem cells exist, and how it changes during aging in mice. They found that over time, the niche deteriorates and becomes overwhelmed by inflammation, which impairs the blood stem cells.

On closer inspection, the scientists identified one particular inflammatory signal, called IL-1B, as critical to impairing the blood stem cells. And since this signal is already implicated in other inflammatory conditions, such as rheumatoid arthritis, there are already drugs in wide use that target it.

Sure enough, the researchers used an arthritis drug called anakinra to block IL-1B in elderly mice, and found that the blood stem cells returned to a younger, healthier state. This helped improve the state of the niche, the function of the blood stem cells and the regeneration of blood cells. The treatment worked even better when the drug was administered throughout the life of the mice, not just when they were already old.

Of course, it’s still early days for this research, and results in animal tests don’t always translate to humans. But the team is optimistic that clinical testing could happen sooner rather than later, since the drug is already in use in humans.

“Treating elderly patients with anti-inflammatory drugs blocking IL-1B function should help with maintaining healthier blood production,” said Passegué.

The research was published in the journal Nature Cell Biology.

Source: Columbia University

4 comments
4 comments
Karmudjun
Awesome article Michael! Next time I'm back at the University I'll pull up the article in Nature Cell Biology and read the source. In the abstract the clear definition of niche being the stroma of the myyelopoietic vasculature within the bones is not expressed - you clarified it very nicely in your synopsis. I mean, I think we all know what a niche is, but to use it to express a specific anatomical location for normal blood cell growth strata isn't the way I learned the use of niche. But, everyone has their own writing style and others are creative with their language usage. Great article though, I look forward to the human trials.



Username
Anakinra may cause side effects. Tell your doctor if any of these symptoms are severe or do not go away:
redness, swelling, bruising, itching, or pain at the site of injection, headache, nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, runny nose, stomach pain, joint pain
Some side effects can be serious. If you experience any of these symptoms or those listed in the SPECIAL PRECAUTIONS section, call your doctor immediately or get emergency medical treatment:
rash, itching, hives, swelling of the lips, tongue, mouth, or face, dizziness, fainting, difficulty breathing, wheezing, sweating, fast or racing heart beat
Anakinra may increase the risk of developing certain types of cancer including lymphoma (cancer that begins in the cells that fight infection) and skin cancer.
Lamar Havard
Nothing new, except the arthritis drug part. Wealthy people and celebrities have been buying blood from teens and young people for decades. But I'm wondering if I can identify as a mouse, because if they just keep experimenting without actually putting things on the market, soon the world will be populated be old people...and immortal MICE!
byrneheart
Health span increase is so important. Aged care pressures have increased significantly.