DNA Damage Contributes to Stem Cell Aging

British and U.S. scientists have separately shown DNA damage causes premature aging in bone-marrow-derived stem cells.

The findings have implications for the use of adult stem cells in transplantation.

Long-lived multi-cellular organisms depend on small pools of slowly dividing stem cells to replenish lost tissue, and it’s important such reserves are self-renewed and maintained with minimal mutations throughout life.

Richard Cornall and colleagues at Oxford University studied bone-marrow-derived stem cells from a mouse strain that has problems repairing DNA damage. The scientists determined unrepaired DNA damage in stem cells can lead to an age-dependent decline in their numbers.

In a separate study, Derrick Rossi and colleagues at Stanford University determined blood-forming stem cells from the bone marrow of mice accumulate DNA damage with age. That, the scientists reported in a similar conclusion, might underlie the reduced capacity of stem cells to yield new tissues and repair injury over time.

Both papers appear in the current issue of the journal Nature.