Aging | Organotypic Cultures as Aging Associated Disease Models

Aging

“[…] many aging researchers may be unaware of recent progress in organotypic models […]”

BUFFALO, NY- December 14, 2022 – A new review was published in Aging (listed as “Aging (Albany NY)” by MEDLINE/PubMed and “Aging-US” by Web of Science) Volume 14, Issue 22, entitled, “Organotypic cultures as aging associated disease models.”

Aging remains a primary risk factor for a host of diseases, including leading causes of death. Aging and associated diseases are inherently multifactorial, with numerous contributing factors and phenotypes at the molecular, cellular, tissue, and organismal scales. Despite the complexity of aging phenomena, models currently used in aging research possess limitations. 

Frequently used in vivo models often have important physiological differences, age at different rates, or are genetically engineered to match late disease phenotypes rather than early causes. Conversely, routinely used in vitro models lack the complex tissue-scale and systemic cues that are disrupted in aging. 

To fill in gaps between in vivo and traditional in vitro models, researchers have increasingly been turning to organotypic models, which provide increased physiological relevance with the accessibility and control of in vitro context. While powerful tools, the development of these models is a field of its own, and many aging researchers may be unaware of recent progress in organotypic models, or hesitant to include these models in their own work. 

In this review, researchers from Martina M. Sanchez, Isabella A. Bagdasarian, William Darch, and Joshua T. Morgan from University of California, Riverside, described recent progress in tissue engineering applied to organotypic models while highlighting examples explicitly linked to aging and associated disease, as well as examples of models that are relevant to aging. 

“We specifically highlight progress made in skin, gut, and skeletal muscle, and describe how recently demonstrated models have been used for aging studies or similar phenotypes.”

Throughout, this review emphasizes the accessibility of these models and aims to provide a resource for researchers seeking to leverage these powerful tools.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.18632/aging.204361 

Corresponding Author: Joshua T. Morgan

Corresponding Email: [email protected] 

Keywords: tissue engineering, organotypic, skeletal muscle, skin, intestine

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About Aging-US:

Launched in 2009, Aging (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 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.

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