The authors of today’s open access research offer an interesting viewpoint on cellular senescence in the context of cancer, presenting it as an aspect of the innate immune response to the signs of cancer-inducing mutational damage, or to the signs of cancer suppression programs operating in cells. The objective of the body’s numerous, layered defenses against cancer is to destroy all cells that show the signs of becoming cancerous. The first line of defense is the state of cellular senescence, in which cells shut down their ability to replicate, prime themselves to self-destruct via the programmed cell death path of apoptosis, and alert the immune system via a mix of inflammatory…
Cellular Senescence as a Program of the Innate Immune System
The authors of today’s open access research offer an interesting viewpoint on cellular senescence in the context of cancer, presenting it as an aspect of the innate immune response to the signs of cancer-inducing mutational damage, or to the signs of cancer suppression programs operating in cells. The objective of the body’s numerous, layered defenses against cancer is to destroy all cells that show the signs of becoming cancerous. The first line of defense is the state of cellular senescence, in which cells shut down their ability to replicate, prime themselves to self-destruct via the programmed cell death path of apoptosis, and alert the immune system via a mix of inflammatory…