ExoAGEing

Advanced Glycation End-products (AGEs), notably carboxymethyl-lysine (CML), are involved in age-related diseases and found at high levels in several processed foods. The exposure to dietary AGES, particularly in critical developmental periods but also throughout life, raises questions about their harmfulness to health, specifically their role in low-grade inflammation, inflammaging and age-related disorders The aim of this collaborative project is to understand by which biological mechanisms perinatal or lifelong exposure to dietary CML contributes to the induction of chronic, low-grade inflammation and the occurrence of related chronic diseases. The novelty of this study lies in its interdisciplinary examination of the molecular mechanisms underlying the deleterious effects of CML, and its testing of antagonists that block the CML-mediated cellular response via RAGE, the receptor for AGEs. Our strategy is to use transgenic mice, C elegans and cellular models in order to fully elucidate the mechanisms by which CML acts in vivo (the CML–RAGE axis), and to develop a new anti inflammaging drug.