Induction of Accelerated Aging in a Mouse Model

Abstract

With the global increase of the elderly population, the improvement of the treatment for various aging-related diseases and the extension of a healthy lifespan have become some of the most important current medical issues. In order to understand the developmental mechanisms of aging and aging-related disorders, animal models are essential to conduct relevant studies. Among them, mice have become one of the most prevalently used model animals for aging-related studies due to their high similarity to humans in terms of genetic background and physiological structure, as well as their short lifespan and ease of reproduction. This review will discuss some of the common and emerging mouse models of accelerated aging and related chronic diseases in recent years, with the aim of serving as a reference for future application in fundamental and translational research.

Keywords: aging; aging-related disease; mouse model.

Figure 1

Aging-related diseases include Alzheimer’s disease (AD), sarcopenia, heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), chronic kidney disease (CKD), osteoarthritis, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), which occur in different tissues or organs. With the help of mice as model organisms, researchers have used different methods to establish disease models in different tissues or organs of mice. In recent years, some common or emerging methods of modeling aging-related diseases are shown above, and these methods are classified according to the organ to which the disease mainly affects. Figure 1 was created with BioRender software (https://biorender.com/ (accessed on 20 April 2022)).