Aging, though a natural process, can come with a feeling of dread for many. It is no wonder that for a long time now humans have sought ways to stop or delay the process, and although we have not been completely successful, we try nonetheless. Most of these efforts to delay the aging process are focused on preventing age-related skin changes like skin wrinkles and dryness.
Facial Wrinkles
In a recent publication in Aging Volume 14, Issue 9, a single-cell transcriptomics study uncovered the reason for age-resistant maintenance of cell identities, stem cell compartments, and differentiation trajectories in old naked mole-rats. The study aims to apply the results in inhibiting the aging process in humans, both for cosmetic and health purposes.
Role of the skin in the aging process
The protective function of the skin plays a pivotal role in the aging process. It protects humans and animals from external risks, prevents fluid loss, stabilizes body temperature, and houses receptors and nerves that relay information to the brain. The maintenance of the normal functioning of the skin is essential, as skin dysfunctions can result in deleterious conditions ranging from fluid loss to more severe diseases like infections or UV-induced carcinomas, associated with aging. It is no wonder, then, that most anti-aging therapies are usually targeted toward maintaining skin functions.
Unraveling age resistance in naked mole rats (NMR)
NMRs are underground rodents known for having remarkable longevity and unique resistance to the aging process. Unlike other species, NMRs exhibit striking stability of skin compartments and cell types that maintain stability over time without the usual age-associated changes.
Read Also: Anti-Aging Research: Researchers Identify the Regulators of Skin Aging
The research team hypothesized that the observed maintenance of cellular compartments in older NMR, especially the stem cell pools that occur through Igfbp3 expression, and the increased skin immunity could explain the slower skin aging process.
Using single-cell RNA sequencing to obtain an objective molecular RNA profile of the naked mole rats’ epidermal cell populations, the researchers discovered an unchanged epidermal gene expression despite aging. In fact, the three classical cellular states that defined a unique keratinocyte differentiation were also not unaltered after pseudo-temporal reconstruction.
They also found similarities between the skin healing closure of the younger and older NMR. Interestingly, the number of stem cells also remained unchanged throughout aging. On analysis, the NMR epidermal cells revealed two main populations, immune cells and keratinocytes, arranged in one and ten clusters, respectively. Further analysis revealed that in each cluster, they discovered an overexpression of 2 genes in the basal stem cells and 5 genes in the immune cells of older animals.
They postulated that the NMR skin showed peculiar genetic and cellular features, and these features and the observed stability of the aging NMR skin transcriptome likely explain the age resistance.
Clinical significance
The results of the study could be used in the prevention of age-associated skin dysfunction, which in turn could help prevent skin diseases associated with the aging process.
Final thoughts
This study fits a piece into the existing puzzle of the aging process and provides a foundation for new discoveries and insight into preventing age-related changes associated with skin dysfunction.
References
Savina, A., Jaffredo, T., Saldmann, F., Faulkes, C. G., Moguelet, P., Leroy, C., Del Marmol, D., Codogno, P., Foucher, L., Zalc, A., Viltard, M., Friedlander, G., Aractingi, S., & Fontaine, R. H. (2022). Single-cell transcriptomics reveals age-resistant maintenance of cell identities, stem cell compartments and differentiation trajectories in long-lived naked mole-rats skin. Aging (Albany NY), 14(9), 3911–3932. https://doi.org/10.18632/aging.204054
