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Published on: June 28, 2019
Rejuvenation Potential of Developmental Genes Downregulated in Aging
Byungkuk Min1, Juhyeon Nam1, Minseo Choi1,2
1Center for Gene and Cell Therapy, Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Daejeon, Korea.
International Journal of Stem Cells
|June 9, 2026
Summary
Researchers identified four novel rejuvenation induction factors (RIFs) that reverse cellular aging markers without the oncogenic risks associated with Yamanaka factors, offering a safer strategy for age-related disease therapies.
Area of Science:
- Cellular Biology
- Genetics
- Aging Research
Background:
- Partial reprogramming using Yamanaka factors can reverse cellular aging but carries oncogenic risks, hindering clinical applications.
- Identifying safer alternatives for cellular rejuvenation is crucial for therapeutic development.
Purpose of the Study:
- To discover novel, safer rejuvenation induction factors (RIFs) that can reverse cellular aging without inducing pluripotency or oncogenic transformation.
- To identify molecular targets that counteract age-related transcriptional changes.
Main Methods:
- Integrated five aging datasets with single-cell transcriptomics from mouse preimplantation embryos.
- Compared gene expression patterns between aging and early development.
- Identified genes upregulated during development and downregulated during aging, and refined this list using Yamanaka factor reprogramming data.
Main Results:
- Isolated four RIFs involved in ribosome biogenesis, mitochondrial import, translational regulation, and serine metabolism.
- Demonstrated that these RIFs reduce senescence markers in aged fibroblasts.
- Showed RIFs restore age-associated gene expression patterns without activating pluripotency pathways.
Conclusions:
- The identified RIFs represent a potentially safer approach to cellular rejuvenation than Yamanaka factors.
- These factors modulate age-associated developmental pathways, offering a new therapeutic avenue for aging.
- RIFs avoid the oncogenic risks linked to Yamanaka factors, paving the way for clinical translation.
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