Cellular Senescence and Senolytics in Aging and Diseases

Join us for a BioTalk webinar on cellular senescence, a hallmark of aging where cells permanently exit the cell cycle due to damage and stress. Cellular senescence, a hallmark of aging, involves the stable exit from the cell cycle in response to cellular damage and stress. Senescent cells (SnCs) often develop a pathogenic senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP) that promotes secondary senescence and disrupts tissue homeostasis, impairing tissue repair and regeneration. Transgenic mouse models with the capability for genetic ablation of SnCs have demonstrated their crucial role in driving aging and related diseases. Consequently, senotherapeutics have been developed to either pharmacologically eliminate SnCs (senolytics) or suppress the SASP and other senescence markers (senomorphics). Extensive preclinical studies and initial clinical trials have shown the potential benefits of senotherapeutics, leading to multiple ongoing clinical trials. In conclusion, targeting cellular senescence presents a promising therapeutic strategy for slowing aging and treating age-related diseases. This webinar is made in collaboration with GenoBioTx --- Speaker Yi Zhu - Assistant Professor, Mayo Clinic Dr. Yi Zhu earned her BS from Beijing Normal University, followed by a PhD from the University of Michigan. She completed her postdoctoral training under the mentorship of Dr. James Kirkland at the Mayo Clinic, where she later joined the faculty in the Department of Physiology and Biomedical Engineering. Now an assistant professor at Mayo Clinic, Dr. Zhu is renowned for her groundbreaking work on cellular senescence. Her research primarily focuses on how senescent cells drive age-related diseases and neurological disorders. Among her significant achievements is the discovery of the first generation of senolytics in 2015, which has shown great promise in preclinical trials for mitigating age-associated dysfunction. Currently, Dr. Zhu’s research targets senescent glial cells and explores the role of peripheral senescent cells in brain aging and Alzheimer's disease. She also utilizes cutting-edge spatial-OMICs techniques to map senescent cells in human diseased tissues, advancing the understanding of cellular senescence in age-related pathologies.