BIOLOGY OF AGEING - OPEN SIG MEETING - JAN.20TH 2022

Dear Colleagues,

The EuGMS SIG on Biology of Ageing is glad to invite you to a series of bimonthly open meetings to present the latest and activities of the teams and members of the SIG.

Each meeting will include a presentation and time for discussion.

Next meeting will be on Thursday January 20th, 2022 - 1PM CET - 60 min –

Topic: The NAD⁺-mitophagy axis slows stem cell ageing in Werner syndrome
Werner syndrome (WS) is a rare genetic disorder that displays various accelerated aging features, including metabolic dysfunction. Etiologically, it is caused by mutations of the WRN gene, which encodes the protein WRN that participates in DNA repair and stem cell maintenance. However, the relationship between severe metabolic impairment and stem cell exhaustion in WS remains elusive. In this talk, I will present our results demonstrating that impaired loss of WRN drives the depletion of NAD⁺ in both patient cells and animal models of WS. Mechanistically, impairment of the NAD⁺-mitophagy axis leads to accumulation of damaged mitochondria, resulting in impaired metabolism and stem cell exhaustion in WS. Conversely, we showed that NAD⁺ augmentation, restored intestinal stem cell proliferation as well as extends lifespan in a D. melanogaster model of WS. We are now studying the underlining mechanism for the effect of NAD⁺ precursors in both Drosophila and human-derived WS stem cells. In view of the oral bioavailability of NR shown in several clinical trials, this study suggests a potential therapeutic strategy for WS, which is incurable at the moment.    
 
Presented by: Sofie Lautrup
Department of Clinical Molecular Biology, University of Oslo and Akershus University Hospital, 1478 Lørenskog, Norway
Sofie Lautrup is a post-doctoral fellow at the University of Oslo and the Akershus University Hospital, Norway. In Associate Prof. Evandro F. Fang’s lab, she is working on the mechanisms of NAD+ depletion and impaired mitophagy in both premature and normal ageing. By combining both human stem cells, C. elegans and Drosophila melanogaster she is aiming at understanding the role of cellular metabolism in stem cell ageing and senescence. Before joining the Fang lab, she obtained her PhD degree at Aarhus University, Denmark, and worked as a fellow researcher in Dr. Vilhelm A. Bohr’s laboratory at National Institute on Aging, NIH, USA. She has contributed to six research publications and written five reviews (first-author) during her PhD and post-doc period. For career development, she aims to become a principal investigator focusing her research on DNA repair and metabolism in stem cell ageing.
 
 
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SAVE THE DATE: Next meetings
MARCH 17th 2022 at 1pm CET
MAY 19th 2022 at 1pm CEST