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Updated: Jun 27, 2026

Induction and Validation of Cellular Senescence in Primary Human Cells
Published on: June 20, 2018
Stem Cells in Aging: Influence of Ontogenic, Genetic and Environmental Factors
Edmond J Yunis1, Joaquin Zúñiga, Prasad S Koka
1Department of Cancer Immunology and AIDS, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Boston MA.
Abstract:
Aging is a genetically programmed decline in the functional effectiveness of the organism. It is manifested by a collective group of changes in cells or organs that occur over the course of a lifespan, limiting the duration of life. Longevity usually refers to long-lived members of a population within species. Organs develop and can involute according to specific timetables. Such timetables correlate with a preordained proliferative capacity of cells mediated by cell and organ clocks. In this review, we discuss different aspects related to genetic and environmental factors that are involved in determining life span. We discuss the influence of ontogenic, genetic and environmental factors in aging. The genetic factors can be studied in embryonic stem cells (ESC) and in niches (microenvironments) of stem cells (SC) using cellular or experimental animal models. We discuss molecular mechanisms involving genes and proteins associated with death pathways, niches, or hubs, on longevity. Moreover, we also discuss genes and proteins, associated with death pathways, on longevity. Unraveling these mechanisms may further our understanding of human aging leading to development of therapeutic interventions with the potential of prolonging life.
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