Can a rare im­mune cell of­fer the key to slow­ing down senes­cence? A Bay Area start­up looks to find out

For years, sci­en­tists have looked to curb ag­ing and chron­ic dis­eases by clear­ing de­funct cells with ir­repara­ble dam­age, al­so known as senes­cent cells. Drug­mak­ers like Bris­tol My­ers Squibb and Uni­ty Biotech­nol­o­gy have toiled over senolyt­ics to kill the stub­born cells. So when Robin Man­sukhani was told it could be done us­ing reawak­ened im­mune cells, he was in­trigued.

Senes­cence serves a pro­tec­tive func­tion. It oc­curs when cells are too dam­aged to keep di­vid­ing — for ex­am­ple, if they de­vel­op a can­cer­ous mu­ta­tion. But senes­cent cells al­so con­tribute to ag­ing and oth­er dis­eases, emit­ting tox­ic mol­e­cules that cause in­flam­ma­tion and tis­sue dam­age.

Unlock this article instantly by becoming a free subscriber.

You’ll get access to free articles each month, plus you can customize what newsletters get delivered to your inbox each week, including breaking news.

SIGN UP LOG IN BECOME A PREMIUM SUBSCRIBER