Research Perspective Volume 4, Issue 3 pp 166—175

Figure 1. The interplay between autophagy and inflammasomes in the generation of inflammaging.

Normally, the autophagic uptake of dysfunctional mitochondria prevents the excessive ROS production and in that way the activation of inflammasomes. However, during aging, the autophagic capacity declines and increased ROS production and aggregated proteins activate inflammasomes which provoke a low-grade inflammation in several tissues and in that way inhibit autophagy and accelerate the aging process. There are several activators of autophagy which can delay the aging process. It is known that mTOR inhibitors and AMPK activators can extend lifespan in certain conditions.