Friday, September 26, 2025
Science
No Result
View All Result
  • Login
  • HOME
  • SCIENCE NEWS
  • CONTACT US
  • HOME
  • SCIENCE NEWS
  • CONTACT US
No Result
View All Result
Scienmag
No Result
View All Result
Home Science News Medicine

Drugs that kill “zombie” cells may benefit some older women, but not all, Mayo Clinic study finds

July 2, 2024
in Medicine
Reading Time: 3 mins read
0
Drugs that kill "zombie" cells may benefit some older women, but not all, Mayo Clinic study finds
66
SHARES
600
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
ADVERTISEMENT

ROCHESTER, Minn. — Drugs that selectively kill senescent cells may benefit otherwise healthy older women but are not a “one-size-fits-all” remedy, Mayo Clinic researchers have found. Specifically, these drugs may only benefit people with a high number of senescent cells, according to findings publishing July 2 in Nature Medicine.


ROCHESTER, Minn. — Drugs that selectively kill senescent cells may benefit otherwise healthy older women but are not a “one-size-fits-all” remedy, Mayo Clinic researchers have found. Specifically, these drugs may only benefit people with a high number of senescent cells, according to findings publishing July 2 in Nature Medicine.

Senescent cells are malfunctioning cells in the body that lapse into a state of dormancy. These cells, also known as “zombie cells,” can’t divide but can drive chronic inflammation and tissue dysfunction linked to aging and chronic diseases. Senolytic drugs clear tissues of senescent cells.

In the 20-week, phase 2 randomized controlled trial, 60 healthy women past menopause intermittently received a senolytic combination composed of FDA-approved dasatinib and quercetin, a natural product found in some foods. It is the first randomized controlled trial of intermittent senolytic treatment in healthy aging women, and the investigators used bone metabolism as a marker for efficacy.

Researchers found that this combination, known as D+Q, had beneficial effects on bone formation but did not reduce bone resorption or the breakdown and removal of bone tissue. Furthermore, D+Q mainly benefited people with evidence of a high number of senescent cells. This group had more robust increases in bone formation, decreases in bone resorption, and an increase in bone mineral density at the wrist.

“Our findings argue against what many people are already doing — using commercial products like quercetin or related compounds like fisetin that may show some senolytic properties,” says senior author Sundeep Khosla, M.D., an endocrinologist at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. “They’re using them as anti-aging agents without knowing if they have high enough senescent cell numbers to benefit, or what dose or dosing regimen is needed to be effective yet safe.”

Dr. Khosla says more research is needed to better identify people who may benefit from senolytic treatments and to develop more specific and potent senolytic drugs that may show efficacy in more people. People who have experienced “accelerated aging” — such as cancer survivors after chemotherapy, or those with progeroid syndromes – may have increased numbers of senescent cells.

Besides their application to aging, senolytic drugs may be useful against certain diseases, such as idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, dementia, diabetes, heart disease and others, Dr. Khosla says. However, these drugs will likely need to be customized according to their potency and the amounts of senescent cells in the diseased tissues.

The study was supported by National Institutes of Health grant nos. R21 AG065868, P01 AG062413, R01 AG 076515, R01 DK128552, R01 AG055529, R37 AG13925 and R33 AG61456.

Co-authors are Joshua Farr, Ph.D., Elizabeth Atkinson, Sara Achenbach, Tammie Volkman, Amanda Tweed, Stephanie Vos, Ming Ruan, Jad Sfeir, M.D., Matthew Drake, M.D., Ph.D., Dominik Saul, M.D., Madison Doolittle, Ph.D., Irina Bancos, M.D., Kai Yu, M.D., Tamara Tchkonia, Ph.D., Nathan LeBrasseur, Ph.D., James Kirkland, M.D., Ph.D., and David Monroe, Ph.D.

Drs. LeBrasseur, Tchkonia and Kirkland have financial interests related to this research, including Mayo Clinic patents and pending patents covering senolytic drugs and their uses. The remaining authors declare no competing interests.

###

About Mayo Clinic
Mayo Clinic is a nonprofit organization committed to innovation in clinical practice, education and research, and providing compassion, expertise and answers to everyone who needs healing. Visit the Mayo Clinic News Network for additional Mayo Clinic news.



Journal

Nature Medicine

Article Publication Date

2-Jul-2024

Share26Tweet17
Previous Post

RecombinHunt: predicting new pandemics through data analysis

Next Post

New lab test to detect persistent HIV strains in Africa may aid search for cure

Related Posts

blank
Medicine

Measuring a Broad Sarbecovirus Vaccine’s Future Impact

September 26, 2025
blank
Medicine

Cutting-Edge Biomonitoring Advances Boost Women’s Health

September 26, 2025
blank
Medicine

Advances in Prostate Cancer Treatment: Targeted Radioactive Therapy, Innovative SBRT Techniques, and 5DCT-Guided Imaging Breakthroughs

September 26, 2025
blank
Medicine

Testing Reliability and Validity of Chinese Nursing Scale

September 26, 2025
blank
Medicine

InfEHR: Deep Geometric Learning Enhances Clinical Phenotyping

September 26, 2025
blank
Medicine

Cancer patients undergoing treatment late in life face increased hospital, emergency, and ICU admissions, with reduced hospice care utilization

September 26, 2025
Next Post
New Lab Test to Detect Persistent HIV Strains in Africa May Aid Search for Cure

New lab test to detect persistent HIV strains in Africa may aid search for cure

  • Mothers who receive childcare support from maternal grandparents show more parental warmth, finds NTU Singapore study

    Mothers who receive childcare support from maternal grandparents show more parental warmth, finds NTU Singapore study

    27560 shares
    Share 11021 Tweet 6888
  • University of Seville Breaks 120-Year-Old Mystery, Revises a Key Einstein Concept

    968 shares
    Share 387 Tweet 242
  • Bee body mass, pathogens and local climate influence heat tolerance

    645 shares
    Share 258 Tweet 161
  • Researchers record first-ever images and data of a shark experiencing a boat strike

    512 shares
    Share 205 Tweet 128
  • Groundbreaking Clinical Trial Reveals Lubiprostone Enhances Kidney Function

    467 shares
    Share 187 Tweet 117
Science

Embark on a thrilling journey of discovery with Scienmag.com—your ultimate source for cutting-edge breakthroughs. Immerse yourself in a world where curiosity knows no limits and tomorrow’s possibilities become today’s reality!

RECENT NEWS

  • Pollution Impact on Rotan Fish Muscle Composition
  • Assessing Water Quality and Ecological Risks in Pampas
  • Cinematic Portrayal of Anti-Corruption Revolution: ‘Satyagraha’
  • Measuring a Broad Sarbecovirus Vaccine’s Future Impact

Categories

  • Agriculture
  • Anthropology
  • Archaeology
  • Athmospheric
  • Biology
  • Blog
  • Bussines
  • Cancer
  • Chemistry
  • Climate
  • Earth Science
  • Marine
  • Mathematics
  • Medicine
  • Pediatry
  • Policy
  • Psychology & Psychiatry
  • Science Education
  • Social Science
  • Space
  • Technology and Engineering

Subscribe to Blog via Email

Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Join 5,185 other subscribers

© 2025 Scienmag - Science Magazine

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • HOME
  • SCIENCE NEWS
  • CONTACT US

© 2025 Scienmag - Science Magazine

Discover more from Science

Subscribe now to keep reading and get access to the full archive.

Continue reading