Related Experiment Video
Updated: Nov 10, 2025

Measuring the Stiffness of Ex Vivo Mouse Aortas Using Atomic Force Microscopy
Published on: October 19, 2016
Stiffness and Aging in Cardiovascular Diseases: The Dangerous Relationship between Force and Senescence
Silvia Ferrari1,2, Maurizio Pesce1
1Unità di Ingegneria Tissutale Cardiovascolare, Centro cardiologico Monzino, Istituto di Ricovero e Cura a Carattere Scientifico(IRCCS), 20138 Milan, Italy.
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.
Related Concept Videos
The Effect of Aging on Tissues
Heart Failure II: Pathophysiology
Aging
Cellular Clock Theory
The cellular clock theory posits that the human lifespan is closely tied to the finite capacity of cells to divide, a phenomenon governed by telomeres, which are protective caps at the ends of...
Pathophysiology of Heart Failure
Cardiomyopathy IV: Restrictive Cardiomyopathy
Coronary Artery Disease II: Pathophysiology

