Endosymbiotic theory of aging revisited: Age-related leakage of mitochondrial dsDNA/RNA stimulates cytosolic nucleic acid sensors which remodel the immune network and promote the aging process.
Mitochondrial stress and immune activation drive aging inflammation, identifying potential drug targets to slow multiple age-related diseases.
This Biogerontology review proposes a revised endosymbiotic framework for aging in which mitochondrial stress-induced release of bacterial-ancestry dsDNA and dsRNA triggers cytosolic pattern recognition receptors, driving chronic sterile inflammation (inflammaging) that underlies multiple hallmarks of aging. The synthesis connects mitochondrial biology, innate immunity, and aging in a coherent mechanistic narrative with therapeutic implications for cGAS-STING pathway targeting.
What the study was
- Study design
- review
- Population
- Not directly applicable (mechanistic review)
- Category
- Other
- Maturity
- Exploratory
- Journal
- Biogerontology
Why it surfaced
Thoughtful mechanistic review in Biogerontology linking mitochondrial DNA leakage with cGAS-STING-driven inflammaging—relevant to aging biology and potential longevity intervention targets; review design limits evidence quality score.
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