Aging May Be a Loss of Cell Identity, Not Just Wear and Tear

Loss of cell identity drives human aging: Two new papers

Two new papers, one in Nature by Vadim Gladyshev's Harvard team and one in Cell by Juan Carlos Izpisua Belmonte's group at Altos Labs, propose that aging is driven by the erosion of epigenetic constraints that lock cells into their specialized identities. This loss leads to mesenchymal drift, where cells take on fibroblast-like properties, causing fibrosis and inflammation. The work suggests interventions like caloric restriction, partial reprogramming with Yamanaka factors, and lithium may slow or reverse this process.