During aging, hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) undergo functional decline affecting their ability to regenerate the hematopoietic system and support lymphoid cell production. This functional decline contributes to some aging-related diseases. Moreover, aging is associated with biomechanical changes in HSCs, including alterations in nuclear envelope tension and nuclear mechanical integrity and mechanotransduction. However, it remains unclear whether aging of somatic stem cells can be prevented by targeting changes in nuclear mechanosignaling.
Researchers from Stanford University have reported that inhibiting the enzyme 15-hydroxyprostaglandin dehydrogenase (15-PGDH) promoted cartilage regeneration in mouse models of osteoarthritis due to either aging or tissue injury. An oral version of the inhibitor that the team used is in a clinical trial for sarcopenia; it improved muscle mass and strength in preclinical studies. However, the mechanism by which 15-PDGH inhibition works appears to differ in the two conditions.
It’s the biological resource that keeps on giving, and now UK Biobank has released the final tranche of data on the levels of 249 metabolites in the blood of its half a million participants.
Could GLP-1 receptor agonists (GLP-1RAs), already used in obesity and diabetes, be repurposed as drugs to slow aging? Hong Kong, one of the places in the world with the highest human longevity, is also home to a scientific study on the effects of GLP-1RAs. For the first time, scientists at the Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) have assessed their pharmacological potential in later life using a multiomics preclinical approach.
South Korean researchers led by Lee In-suk of Yonsei University have reported the most complete oral microbiome catalog to date, with more than 72,000 genomes. Detailed in Cell Host & Microbe on Nov. 12, 2025, the database is expected to serve as a universal platform for academia and enable “precision microbiome medicine” for the industry, Lee told BioWorld.
South Korean researchers led by Lee In-suk of Yonsei University have reported the most complete oral microbiome catalog to date, with more than 72,000 genomes. Detailed in Cell Host & Microbe on Nov. 12, 2025, the database is expected to serve as a universal platform for academia and enable “precision microbiome medicine” for the industry, Lee told BioWorld.
In Alzheimer’s disease, microglia act as a double-edged sword. They can either protect the brain or worsen the damage, depending on their activation state. Inflammatory activation harms healthy neurons. However, a study reveals that a special type of microglia expressing specific receptors and behaving like T cells may help mitigate this neurodegenerative condition.
Bowhead whales (Balaena mysticetus) live year-round in the icy or near-icy waters of the Arctic and sub-Arctic. Although they migrate with the seasonal cycles of ice formation and melting, they never reach the warmer waters visited by other large marine mammals. Their adaptation to low temperatures may have also enabled them to live longer and avoid cancer, a disease closely linked to aging.
Do men’s and women’s brains age equally? Women are more often diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) than men. Age is the primary known risk factor for AD prevalence, and both aging and AD are associated with brain atrophy, but it is still not clear whether men and women differ regarding brain decline in aging. There is mixed evidence regarding this topic, since most of the larger studies have shown an abrupt decay of total gray matter and hippocampal volume in men, but other studies have found steeper total gray matter decline in women.
A team of U.S. and South Korean researchers have developed an AI model called MSI-SEER that can not only predict microsatellite instability-high (MSI-H) tumors based on tissue slides, but also flag “what it does not know.” “Have you ever asked ChatGPT anything, and the response was, ‘I don’t know?’” Cheong Jae-ho asked during an interview with BioWorld. “Probably not, and that is the problem with AI now.”