Stiffness and Aging in Cardiovascular Diseases: The Dangerous Relationship between Force and Senescence

Abstract

Biological aging is a process associated with a gradual decline in tissues’ homeostasis based on the progressive inability of the cells to self-renew. Cellular senescence is one of the hallmarks of the aging process, characterized by an irreversible cell cycle arrest due to reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, telomeres shortening, chronic inflammatory activation, and chromatin modifications. In this review, we will describe the effects of senescence on tissue structure, extracellular matrix (ECM) organization, and nucleus architecture, and see how these changes affect (are affected by) mechano-transduction. In our view, this is essential for a deeper understanding of the progressive pathological evolution of the cardiovascular system and its relationship with the detrimental effects of risk factors, known to act at an epigenetic level.

Effect of Physical Activity, Smoking, and Sleep on Telomere Length: A Systematic Review of Observational and Intervention Studies

“…Life expectancy has increased in recent decades, and it is expected to rise in the coming years [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 ]. Therefore, there is a higher probability of suffering from diseases related to an aging population, such as cardiovascular diseases [ 1 , 5 , 6 , 7 ], diabetes [ 7 , 8 , 9 ], hypertension [ 10 , 11 , 12 ], cancer [ 7 , 13 ], and neurological diseases [ 7 , 14 ]. Owing to the social, psychological, and economic conditions associated with aging, this has now become one of the major issues facing public health [ 15 , 16 , 17 ].…”

Promise and Perspective of Nanomaterials in Antisenescence Tissue Engineering Applications

“…68 Therefore, it would be imperative to consider the agingaltered senescent cell phenotypes and ECM when designing a biomaterial for antiaging tissue regeneration application. Given that the changes in cellular mechanical properties are hallmarks of the aging process, 69 there is a strong correlation between age and cytoplasmic stiffness (cytoplasmic compliance or deformability recedes with age); 70,71 senescent cells are characterized by dramatic changes in their mechanical properties, including altered cell shape and increased size and volume, 72 the intriguing question we are asking is if the aged cellular mechanical properties can be modulated by cell residing substrates/biomaterials, particularly at the nanoscale level, and subsequently, if their senescent phenotype can be reversed or rejuvenated. An increasing number of reports provide evidence that tuning the physical properties of the cell microenvironment such as matrix rigidity, topography, and geometry is one promising approach to transduce appropriate cues into cells to control cellular mechanical properties.…”

La epigenética como protagonista en la senescencia celular

“…El balance entre estos procesos asegura la homeostasis tisular (1). La senescencia celular fue identificada en el laboratorio hace sesenta años (2) y representa uno de los sellos o características propias del envejecimiento normal de un organismo (3,4,5), denominados hallmarks, y hoy por hoy, es un factor de riesgo para la alta prevalencia de enfermedades crónicas, como el cáncer y entidades cardiovasculares y neurodegenerativas (5,6,7,8,9,10,11).…”