Date & Time
- 21st August 2024, 15:00-16:00
- Venue: Bristol Myers Squibb Building, Meeting Room (2F)
- On-site participation, admission free
- Organizer: Centre for Cancer Immunotherapy and Immunobiology (CCII)
Speaker
Dr. Miguel Godinho Ferreira
Directeur de Recherche 2 au Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)
Institute for Research in Cancer and Aging of Nice (IRCAN), France
Abstract
Telomere shortening is a hallmark of aging, counteracted by telomerase. In zebrafish, the intestine is among the first organs to show signs of aging, such as short telomeres and functional decline. This is particularly pronounced in telomerase mutant zebrafish (tert-/-). Our study reveals that inducing telomerase expression in enterocytes in the gut of tert mutants prevents premature aging. This intervention not only reverses intestinal senescence, apoptosis, and inflammation but also restores gut barrier functions and microbiota dysbiosis to young WT zebrafish. Remarkably, this gut-specific enhancement also improves conditions in remote organs like the testis and kidney marrow, restores fertility, and extends lifespan. These findings highlight the gut’s central role in systemic aging, suggesting that maintaining telomere length there can broadly counteract the aging process in zebrafish.
