Removing an RNA delayed blood vessel aging in mice
Deleting the RNA from cells lining mouse blood vessels also improved vessel widening and new blood vessel growth in a model of restricted blood flow.
Limit: The size and duration of the vascular-aging delay are not reported
Edited by Boris Djordjevic · AgingResearch.News
In mouse experiments, researchers deleted lncAAT, an RNA molecule that does not code for a protein, specifically from endothelial cells, which line blood vessels. This delayed blood vessel aging and improved the vessels’ ability to widen. It also improved new blood vessel growth in a model of restricted blood flow to a hind limb.
The team identified lncAAT by comparing RNA patterns in young and aged human aortas, the body’s main artery. Its levels increased with age. Experiments in animals and cells grown in the lab found that increasing lncAAT reduced energy production and led to endothelial senescence, a state in which blood vessel lining cells stop dividing.
Why it matters
Senescence in blood vessel lining cells contributes to cardiovascular disease. The authors proposed inhibiting lncAAT as a possible strategy for addressing vascular aging.
Caveats
The mouse experiments do not establish benefits in people. The human evidence came from comparisons of young and aged aortas, not an intervention.
The paper
The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-sen University
Cardiovascular Research, Oct 31, 2026, Open access, CC BY-NC
Comments
Be the first to comment.