Lipoic acid and autophagy: new insights into stem cell aging.

The gastrointestinal tract undergoes homeostatic self-renewal to replace aged and damaged epithelial cells. This process, sustained by intestinal stem cells (ISCs), can operate accurately for many years but gradually declines with age. Although stem cell aging has been intensively explored, the mechanisms remain poorly understood. In this issue of EMBO Reports, Du et al report that alpha-lipoic acid (ALA) sustains an active endocytosis-autophagy network that effectively reverses age-dependent ISC hyperplasia in Drosophila (Du et al, 2020). This work suggests a new strategy for treating aging-associated gastrointestinal diseases.