Title:Aging and Proteins: What Does Proteostasis Have to Do with Age?
VOLUME: 18 ISSUE: 3
Author(s):S. Magalhaes, B.J. Goodfellow and A. Nunes*
Affiliation:iBiMED – Institute of Biomedicine, Department of Medical Sciences, University of Aveiro, Aveiro, CICECO – Aveiro Institute of Materials, University of Aveiro, Aveiro, iBiMED – Institute of Biomedicine, Department of Medical Sciences, University of Aveiro, Aveiro
Keywords:Aging, proteostasis, proteasome, chaperones, protein aggregates, biomarkers of aging.
Abstract:The world is aging and we must face the challenges that this brings. One of
the reasons for the increasing aging of the world’s population is the increase in life
expectancy and, since we live longer, it is of paramount importance to live well and to
prevent age-associated diseases. In this way, it is crucial to improve knowledge of the
aging process and of the mechanisms that contribute to it. Ideally it would be of great
interest to have a panel of biomarkers of healthy aging that would allow an estimate of
the biological age of an individual. One of the changes that greatly contribute to aging is
the loss of protein homeostasis, also called proteostasis. To ensure the proper function
of cells and to maintain cellular proteostasis, organisms have developed systems to
control protein synthesis, folding and degradation. Loss or dysfunction of proteostasis is
at the root of many well-studied human neurological diseases, such as Alzheimer’s
disease and, more recently, it has been implicated in the aging process with some
reports showing long-lived animals to have improved proteostasis. Growing evidence
suggests a strong link between modifications in the quantity and/or activity of several
players involved in proteostasis and longevity. In this review, we give an overview of the
main characteristics of aging with focus on proteostasis. We present how changes in
components of proteostasis, during aging, impact the lifespan of model organisms. We
also briefly review the current state of aging biomarkers and discuss the potential of
proteostasis network components as markers of healthy aging.
