Modelling physical resilience in ageing mice

Area of Science:

• Gerontology and aging research
• Translational medicine
• Animal model development

Background:

• Geroprotectors aim to combat age-related decline by targeting multiple physiological deficits.
• Frailty and reduced physical resilience are key aging phenotypes requiring effective interventions.
• Existing mouse models for aging research lack standardized characterization and evaluation methods.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review and identify suitable mouse models for studying physical resilience in the context of aging.
• To establish consensus on the translational path for geroprotector development.
• To evaluate models based on their ability to mimic age-related decline in response to stressors.

Main Methods:

• Literature review of existing mouse models for physical resilience.
• Focus on models involving acute stressors that require integrative, multi-tissue responses.
• Analysis of models where aged mice exhibit impaired recovery compared to young mice.

Main Results:

• Several models show promise, including sepsis, trauma, drug/radiation exposure, ischemia, and environmental stressors (noise, heat, cold).
• Aged mice in these models often display delayed recovery or poorer outcomes post-stressor.
• Lack of consensus on frailty and resilience definitions hinders model evaluation.

Conclusions:

• Identifying and validating robust mouse models is critical for advancing geroprotector research.
• Models demonstrating impaired recovery from acute stressors are valuable for testing interventions.
• Further standardization in defining and measuring frailty and resilience is needed.