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Targeting senescent cells with NKG2D-CAR T cells
Abstract
This study investigates the efficacy of NKG2D chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) engineered T cells in targeting and eliminating stress-induced senescent cells in vitro. Cellular senescence contributes to age-related tissue decline and is characterized by permanent cell cycle arrest and the senescence-associated secretory phenotype (SASP). Immunotherapy, particularly CAR-T cell therapy, emerges as a promising approach to selectively eliminate senescent cells. Our focus is on the NKG2D receptor, which binds to ligands (NKG2DLs) upregulated in senescent cells, offering a target for CAR-T cells. Using mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) and astrocytes (AST) as senescence models, we demonstrate the elevated expression of NKG2DLs in response to genotoxic and oxidative stress. NKG2D-CAR T cells displayed potent cytotoxicity against these senescent cells, with minimal effects on non-senescent cells, suggesting their potential as targeted senolytics. In conclusion, our research presents the first evidence of NKG2D-CAR T cells’ ability to target senescent brain cells, offering a novel approach to manage senescence-associated diseases. The findings pave the way for future investigations into the therapeutic applicability of NKG2D-targeting CAR-T cells in naturally aged organisms and models of aging-associated brain diseases in vivo.
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“Genome-wide CRISPR screens and transcriptomic profiling have identified several promising SnC-specific targets, with urokinase-type plasminogen activator receptor (uPAR) emerging as a leading candidate63,64”
From Emerging strategies in senotherapeutics: from broad-spectrum senolysis to precision reprogramming (2026) · cites this paper as [64]
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Sorted by citations
Emerging strategies in senotherapeutics: from broad-spectrum senolysis to precision reprogramming
Zhang, W., Song, S., Zhang, Y., Pan, Y., Hu, D., & Wang, Y. (2026) · npj Aging · doi:10.1038/s41514-026-00355-z · Cited by 6
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- Authors
- Deng, Y., Kumar, A., Xie, K., Schaaf, K., Scifo, E., Morsy, S., Li, T., Ehninger, A., Bano, D., & Ehninger, D.
- Venue
- Cell Death Discovery
- Published
- 2024-05-04
- Volume
- 10
- Issue
- 1
- ISSN
- 2058-7716
- PMC
- PMC11069534
- Cited by
- 75
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- 28
- Language
- en
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