
Flushing out 'zombie cells' could help stave off Parkinson's, study suggests - nature24
https://www.theguardian.com/science/2018/jan/23/flushing-out-zombie-cells-could-help-stave-off-parkinsons-study-suggests
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reasonattlm
Senescent cells generate inflammation. So every age-related condition with an
inflammatory component - which is most of them - should be improved to some
degree by that factor alone when senescent cells are removed, even putting
aside other effects of senescent cell accumulation.

Senescent cells are not the only source of inflammation - the immune system
has other sources of dysregulation. The degree to which their contribution is
important will vary tissue by tissue and condition by condition.

Some studies show that a large fraction of astrocytes are senescent in the old
human brain. Much larger than is the case for senescent cell fractions by
number in other tissues. Too large to just go in and clear them all out in
short order - tumor lysis and outright failure of the brain would be on the
menu. You'd have to clear them out slowly over a period of time, allowing for
their replacement. It is probably good that first generation senolytics won't
get past the blood-brain barrier, as they would be pretty hard to use safely
otherwise.

