Senior Director, Research Cellular Longevity Inc dba Loyal Woodstock, GA, United States
Abstract: Aging is a complex process characterized by molecular alterations at numerous biological scales. While these alterations have been extensively studied in humans and rodents, the molecular changes associated with aging in dogs remain less studied. Multiomic profiling methods, such as transcriptomics and proteomics, allow for the interrogation and quantification of transcriptional pathways and bioactive proteins within a desired population. In this study, we sampled 29 female laboratory beagles ages 3 to 14 years old and performed untargeted transcriptomics and proteomics on whole blood and plasma, respectively. In total, 18,451 genes and 7,596 proteins were detected and analyzed. Comparing young (3-5 years old, n=5), old (8-9 years old, n=12), and geriatric (10-14 years old, n=12) dogs, we identified 374 genes and 175 proteins which significantly changed in abundance with age (p< 0.05). These changes converged on common pathways, including DNA repair, collagen processing, and metabolic dysregulation. Notably, we observed a significant overlap between age-associated genes in dogs and those previously identified in humans. In recapitulating key hallmarks of human aging, our findings reinforce the existence of shared aging pathways across species.
