Senolytic agents show promise in mouse model of pelvic organ prolapse

Aging-USOct 22 2024

A new research paper was published in Aging (listed by MEDLINE/PubMed as "Aging (Albany NY)" and "Aging-US" by Web of Science), Volume 16, Issue 19 on September 26, 2024, entitled, "Use of the senolytics dasatinib and quercetin for prevention of pelvic organ prolapse in a mouse animal model."

Pelvic organ prolapse is a common condition among women in the U.S., with a 13% estimated risk of requiring surgery by age 80. Senolytic agents like dasatinib and quercetin (D+Q) target age-related cellular senescence and reduce senescent cell activity in various disease processes.

In their paper, researchers Erryn Tappy, Haolin Shi, Jessica Pruszynski, and Maria Florian-Rodriguez from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology in Dallas, utilized a mouse model of pelvic organ prolapse, Fibulin-5 knockout (Fbln-5-/-) mice, to assess the ability of D+Q to prevent development of prolapse.

The D+Q injections administered did not result in significant differences in prolapse development but did reduce cellular senescence markers in Fbln-5-/- mice. This suggests senolytic agents may help mitigate the role of cellular senescence in tissue dysfunction associated with prolapse. The researchers suggest that further studies are needed to determine optimal timing, dosage, and delivery of senolytics for prolapse prevention.

"This study represents one of the first to evaluate the impact of senolytic agents D+Q on the clinical development of pelvic organ prolapse and expression of proteins associated with cellular senescence in a mouse model."