Tissues are supported by dense and intricate networks of capillaries, hundreds passing through any square millimeter cross-section. Many studies have shown that capillary density decreases with age, which is perhaps another of the many results of faltering tissue maintenance due to the decline in stem cell activity, or alternatively, a specific dysregulation of the processes of angiogenesis at the small scale, resulting from inappropriate cellular reactions to rising levels of damage and chronic inflammation. Fewer capillaries means a l…
Declining Microcirculation as an Important Aspect of Aging
Tissues are supported by dense and intricate networks of capillaries, hundreds passing through any square millimeter cross-section. Many studies have shown that capillary density decreases with age, which is perhaps another of the many results of faltering tissue maintenance due to the decline in stem cell activity, or alternatively, a specific dysregulation of the processes of angiogenesis at the small scale, resulting from inappropriate cellular reactions to rising levels of damage and chronic inflammation. Fewer capillaries means a l…