Ageing cells get a precision medicine roadmap
Senescent cells accumulate as we age. They contribute to inflammation and tissue damage. Now researchers have drawn up a joint roadmap to identify and treat those cells more precisely.
Cellular senescence is the process by which cells stop dividing but remain active, secreting substances that can cause damage to surrounding tissue. An international network of scientists, clinicians, and policy stakeholders published a consensus roadmap following the SENESCENCE2030 conference in Coimbra, Portugal. The study appeared in Nature Aging.
What is currently missing
The plan identifies five priorities. First, different types of senescent cells need better classification. Not all senescent cells are alike: some are more harmful than others. Second, standardised biomarkers are lacking (measurable signals in blood or tissue that allow clinicians to detect senescence). Without such benchmarks, it is difficult to test treatments or know when a patient would benefit from an intervention.
The roadmap also emphasises precision senescence medicine: tailoring treatment to the type of senescent cell and the individual patient. That requires better diagnostics and new clinical trials.
From laboratory to clinic
A key bottleneck is the translation from lab research to the clinic. Much of what is known about senescence comes from cell cultures or animal models. Whether those results also work in humans has in most cases not yet been demonstrated. The roadmap calls for international collaboration and stronger regulatory frameworks to accelerate that step.
For longevity research, this roadmap matters because senescence is one of the most studied ageing mechanisms. If senescent cells can be measured more precisely and treated in a targeted way, that could lay the groundwork for therapies tackling multiple age-related diseases simultaneously. That remains a prospect for the future, however.
Search terms to explore further: cellular senescence biomarkers clinical translation, senolysis precision medicine, SASP inflammatory signalling ageing