The Mitochondrial Recycling Truck: Why Aging Cells Can't Clear Broken Power Plants — and Set Themselves on Fire
Mitophagy — the cell's recycling system for damaged mitochondria — slows with age, letting broken units pile up and leak bacterial-like mtDNA that triggers chronic inflammation. Four 2026 studies show restarting this pathway in rheumatoid arthritis and Alzheimer's models suppresses downstream inflammasome activation, while a fourth study reveals selective autophagy extends well beyond mitochondria.
