Cell senescence in human aging: a review of the theory.

Cell senescence limits cell divisions in normal somatic cells and may play a central role in age-related diseases. In this review, we examine the theory that cell senescence underlies and is a pivotal event in human aging and age-related diseases. The model remains completely consistent with what we currently know of cell biology, cell senescence, and the pathology of all human age-related diseases including atherosclerosis, osteoarthritis, immune senescence, skin aging, Alzheimer's dementia, and cancer. Although there is in vitro and ex vivo data to support the model, there is currently no in vivo data supporting the theory. Such data is probably obtainable using available methods and, if confirmatory, would not only have stunning therapeutic consequences, but significant commercial consequences as well.