Artemisia argyi exhibits anti-aging effects through decreasing the senescence in aging stem cells.

Aging is accompanied by functional loss of many cellular pathways, creating an increased risk of many age-related complications (ARC). Aging causes stem cell exhaustion with a concomitant increase in cellular dysfunction. Recently, interest in senotherapeutics has been growing rapidly to promote healthy aging and as an intervention for ARCs. This research focused on screening the senomorphic properties of Artemisia argyi, as an emerging strategy for longevity, and prevention or treatment of ARCs. In this study, we aimed to find the clinical efficacy of daily consumption of Artemisia argyi water extract (AAW) on aging. In vitro 0.1µM Doxorubicin induced senescent human adipose derived mesenchymal stem cells was treated with different concentrations of AAW to show its anti-aging effect. 15 months old SHR rats (n=6) were treated with 7.9 mg/ml AAW for 4 weeks and anti-aging effect was evaluated. In vitro study showed the protective effect of AAW in telomere shortening and helps in maintaining a balance in the expression of anti-aging protein Klotho and TERT. AAW effectively reduced mitochondrial superoxide and also provided a protective shield against senescence markers like over-expression of p21 and formation of double strand breaks, which is known to cause premature aging. Moreover, animal studies indicated that AAW promoted the expression of Klotho in naturally aging rats. In addition, AAW successfully restored the decline cardiac function and improved the grip strength and memory of aging rat. These findings showed that therapeutic targeting of senescent stem cells by AAW restored stem cell homeostasis and improves overall health.

Novel anti-aging herbal formulation Jing Si displays pleiotropic effects against aging associated disorders.

Common characteristics of aging include reduced somatic stem cell number, susceptibility to cardiac injuries, metabolic imbalances and increased risk for oncogenesis. In this study, Pleiotropic anti-aging effects of a decoction Jing Si herbal drink (JS) containing eight Traditional Chinese Medicine based herbs, with known effects against aging related disorders was evaluated. Adipose derived mesenchymal stem cells (ADMSCs) from 16 week old adult and 24 month old aging WKY rats were evaluated for the age-related changes in stem cell homeostasis. Effects of JS on self-renewal, klotho and Telomerase Reverse Transcriptase expression DNA damage response were determined by immunofluorescence staining. The effects were confirmed in senescence induced human ADMSCs and in addition, the potential of JS to maintain telomere length was evaluated by qPCR analysis in ADMSCs challenged for long term with doxorubicin. Further, the effects of JS on doxorubicin-induced hypertrophic effect and DNA damage in H9c2 cardiac cells; MPP+-induced damages in SH-SY5Y neuron cells were investigated. In addition, effects of JS in maintaining metabolic regulation, in terms of blood glucose regulation in type-II diabetes mice model, and their potential to suppress malignancy in different cancer cells were ascertained. The results show that JS maintains stem cell homeostasis and provides cytoprotection. In addition JS regulates blood glucose metabolism, enhances autophagic clearances in neurons and suppresses cancer growth and migration. The results show that JS acts on multiple targets and provides a cumulative protective effect against various age-associated disorders and therefore it is a candidate pleiotropic agent for healthy aging.