Aging of the Intestinal Barrier as a Driving Cause of Chronic Inflammation

Chronic inflammation is a feature of aging, and causes disruption of cell and tissue function throughout the body. Short term inflammation is a necessary feature of regeneration from injury and defense against pathogens, but when inflammatory signaling is maintained for the long term it becomes very harmful. The risk of suffering all of the common diseases of aging is strongly connected to raised inflammation. Given this, we might ask what causes age-related systemic inflammation, and thus where should the research community seek to intervene, in order to reverse this undesirable aspect of degenerative aging. A growing burden of senescent cells is one noteworthy cause, actively encouraging inflammation via the senescence-associated secretory phenotype. The metabolic activity of excess visceral fat tissue is another. Disruption of the intestinal barrier is also an area of focus for the research community, and the subject of today's open access review paper. The intestinal barrier is made up of mucus, epithelial cells connected by tight junctions that prevent the passage of unwanted pathogens and molecules, and patrolling immune cells, intended to maintain a separation between the gut and tissues surrounding the gut. Unfortunately, like all structures and systems in the body, the barrier becomes dysfunctional with age. The result is greater inflammation, as unwanted materials leak into tissue. The Intestinal Barrier Dysfunction as Driving Factor of Inflamma...
Source: Fight Aging! - Category: Research Authors: Tags: Medicine, Biotech, Research Source Type: blogs