Autophagy Flux Is Remodeled Sex- and Cell Type-Specifically During Human Aging, and Is Linked to Reduced Physical Function in Older Adults

Moreno TM, Kumsta C et al. · 2026 · Aging Cell · Atlas ID MOR2026

What this study shows

Autophagy flux in humans is remodeled with age in a sex- and cell-type-specific way, uncoupled from autophagy-gene transcription; in adults over 70, higher PBMC autophagy flux associates with reduced physical function, and 12 weeks of mild exercise lowers PBMC flux while improving function.

Abstract

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Autophagy is widely proposed to decline with age; however, direct evidence across human cell types remains limited. Moreover, it is unclear whether age-associated changes in autophagy-gene transcription are accompanied by corresponding changes in autophagic activity, and whether autophagic activity relates to physiological function during aging. We performed transcriptomic and functional autophagy analyses across subject-matched human cell types from a healthy aging cohort.

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At a glance

Evidence type	H Human study Marked H because it is direct evidence from a human clinical trial or human cohort; the code names the kind of study, not its quality -- a small, well-run trial is still H.
Study type	3 - Human Observational
Model system	Human primary dermal fibroblasts, induced neurons (iNs), PBMCs (healthy aging cohort, pilot exercise intervention)
Journal	Aging Cell
Year	2026
Peer reviewed	Yes
Record last updated	2026-10-01
Source	DOI 10.1111/acel.70734 · PMID 42802483 · Free full text (PMC13617198)

In the Atlas

Open questions that cite this study

Cited as supporting evidence for the open question A sensor/autophagy biomarker panel as a surrogate endpoint for human trials.

Cite this paper

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Moreno, T. M., et al. (2026). Autophagy Flux Is Remodeled Sex- and Cell Type-Specifically During Human Aging, and Is Linked to Reduced Physical Function in Older Adults. Aging Cell. https://doi.org/10.1111/acel.70734

@article{MOR2026,
  author       = {Moreno, T. M. and Kumsta, C. and others},
  title        = {{Autophagy Flux Is Remodeled Sex- and Cell Type-Specifically During Human Aging, and Is Linked to Reduced Physical Function in Older Adults}},
  journal      = {Aging Cell},
  year         = {2026},
  doi          = {10.1111/acel.70734},
  note         = {PMID: 42802483},
}

Cite this Atlas record

The record is the Atlas's own work — the evidence label, the extracted findings and the links. It is cited as part of the dataset, not as the paper.

Barton, O. (2026). Oliver's mTOR Atlas (record MOR2026) [Data set]. https://mtor-atlas.org/study/MOR2026/ · Dataset DOI 10.5281/zenodo.22059963

@misc{atlas_MOR2026,
  author       = {Barton, Oliver},
  title        = {{Oliver's mTOR Atlas}, record MOR2026},
  howpublished = {Data set},
  year         = {2026},
  url          = {https://mtor-atlas.org/study/MOR2026/},
  doi          = {10.5281/zenodo.22059963}
}

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