Recent research indicates that Senolytics, a new class of drugs, have the potential to prevent the transfer of senescence, a key mechanism of ageing, and the related physical and mental decline in individuals receiving organs from older donors.
The groundbreaking research, recently presented at the European Society for Organ Transplantation Congress 2023, heralds new opportunities for increasing the organ donor pool and improving patient outcomes.By transplanting older donor organs into younger recipients, researchers from Harvard Medical School and the Mayo Clinic investigated the role of transplantation in inducing senescence, a biological mechanism linked to aging and age-related diseases.
Recipients that had received old hearts showed augmented frequencies of senescent cells in draining lymph nodes, livers, and muscles, in addition to augmented systemic mt-levels, when compared to recipients that had received young grafts. Strikingly, transplanting old organs led not only to advanced physical but also cognitive impairments in recipient animals.
Maximillian J. Roesel, presenting the study as part of the group at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, commented, “Donor age plays a crucial role in the success of transplantations, with recipients of older organs facing worse short- and long-term outcomes. Nevertheless, the use of older donor organs is essential to tackle the global organ shortage, and this research illuminates fundamental challenges and potential solutions for utilizing older organs.
“Moving forward, we will delve deeper into the mechanisms underpinning our current findings, with a particular focus on the potential role of Senolytics in preventing the transfer of senescence in humans. This research is extremely exciting and clinically so relevant as it may not only help us to improve outcomes but also make more organs available for transplantation,” concluded Stefan G. Tullius, the senior and lead author of the study.