The Circadian System and Aging

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Aging (Aging-US)

Copy: Aging-US published this research paper as the cover for Volume 13, Issue 24, entitled, “Age-dependent expression changes of circadian system-related genes reveal a potentially conserved link to aging” by researchers from Bioinformatics/High Throughput Analysis, Faculty of Mathematics and Computer Science, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Jena, Germany; FLI Leibniz Institute for Age Research, Jena, Germany; Hans Berger Department of Neurology, Jena University Hospital, Jena, Germany; German Center for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv), Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Germany; European Virus Bioinformatics Center (EVBC), Jena, Germany. Abstract The circadian clock system influences the biology of life by establishing circadian rhythms in organisms, tissues, and cells, thus regulating essential biological processes based on the day/night cycle. Circadian rhythms change over a lifetime due to maturation and aging, and disturbances in the control of the circadian system are associated with several age-related pathologies. However, the impact of chronobiology and the circadian system on healthy organ and tissue aging remains largely unknown. Whether aging-related changes of the circadian system’s regulation follow a conserved pattern across different species and tissues, hence representing a common driving force of aging, is unclear. Based on a cross-sectional transcriptome analysis covering 329 RNA-Seq libraries, we provide indications that the circadian system is subjected to aging-related gene alterations shared between evolutionarily distinct species, such as Homo sapiens, Mus musculus, Danio rerio, and Nothobranchius furzeri. We discovered differentially expressed genes by comparing tissue-specific transcriptional profiles of mature, aged, and old-age individuals and report on six genes (per2, dec2, cirp, klf10, nfil3, and dbp) of the circadian system, which show conserved aging-related expression patterns in four organs of the species examined. Our results illustrate how the circadian system and aging might influence each other in various tissues over a long lifespan and conceptually complement previous studies tracking short-term diurnal and nocturnal gene expression oscillations. Sign up for free Altmetric alerts about this article - https://oncotarget.altmetric.com/details/email_updates?id=10.18632%2Foncotarget.203788 DOI - https://doi.org/10.18632/aging.203788 Full Text - https://www.aging-us.com/article/203788/text Correspondence to: Emanuel Barth email: emanuel.barth@uni-jena.de Keywords: aging, circadian clock system, circadian rhythm, inter-species comparison, longevity, RNA-Seq About Aging-US Launched in 2009, Aging-US publishes papers of general interest and biological significance in all fields of aging research and age-related diseases, including cancer—and now, with a special focus on COVID-19 vulnerability as an age-dependent syndrome. Topics in Aging-US go beyond traditional gerontology, including, but not limited to, cellular and molecular biology, human age-related diseases, pathology in model organisms, signal transduction pathways (e.g., p53, sirtuins, and PI-3K/AKT/mTOR, among others), and approaches to modulating these signaling pathways. Please visit our website at http://www.Aging-US.com​​ or connect with us on: SoundCloud - https://soundcloud.com/Aging-Us Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/AgingUS/ Twitter - https://twitter.com/AgingJrnl Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/agingjrnl/ YouTube - https://www.youtube.com/agingus​ LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/company/aging/ Pinterest - https://www.pinterest.com/AgingUS/ Aging-US is published by Impact Journals, LLC please visit http://www.ImpactJournals.com​​ or connect with @ImpactJrnls Media Contact 18009220957 MEDIA@IMPACTJOURNALS.COM