On April 5, 2017, Aging Cell Journal published research co-authored by 2008 Ellison Medical Foundation/AFAR Postdoctoral Fellow and 2013 AFAR Research Grant recipient, Viviana I. Perez, PhD., which details new insights into the drug, rapamycin.
The article explains that rapamycin was already known to increase a regulator that activates genes to reduce cells secreting damaging compounds as we age. This secretion of damaging compounds creates a toxic environment called, senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP).
Dr. Perez and fellow Oregon State University researchers have discovered that rapamycin could also affect levels of SASP directly, and in a way that would protect neurons and other types of cells.
Dr. Perez elaborates: "Any new approach to help protect neurons from damage could be valuable. Other studies, for instance, have shown that astrocyte cells that help protect neuron function and health can be damaged by SASP. This may be one of the causes of some neurologic diseases, including Alzheimer's disease."
Discovering another mechanism of rapamycin preventing SASP-related cellular damages heightens the interest the aging-research field has toward the drug’s ability to address the issues of aging.
The Aging Cell Journal is only accessible with a subscription, but an abstract is available here. The research was recognized in a related feature story on ScienceDaily that can be viewed here and on The World Link that can be read here.
Viviana I. Perez, PhD is an assistant professor in the Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics in the Oregon State University College of Science and principal investigator in the Linus Pauling Institute.
For further information on cellular senescence, please visit our expert-edited Infoaging Guide to Cellular Senescence here.
