cellular senescence

Aging is being reframed not as a single biological clock but as a network of interacting processes: DNA damage, cellular senescence, mitochondrial dysfunction, chronic inflammation, epigenetic change and declining repair mechanisms. Longevity researchers are now testing which parts of this network can be targeted to slow aging, raising questions about how far interventions might extend healthy lifespan.

A commentary in Nature outlines the goals and challenges facing research into cellular senescence, the process by which cells stop dividing and accumulate with ageing. Senescence has become a major focus of ageing and cancer research, but the field still faces open questions about how senescent cells are defined, measured, and targeted therapeutically. The piece sets an agenda for what scientists hope to resolve next.