Language
English
Publication Date
9-1-2024
Journal
Nature Medicine
DOI
10.1038/s41591-024-03096-2
PMID
38956196
PMCID
PMC11705617
PubMedCentral® Posted Date
9-1-2025
PubMedCentral® Full Text Version
Author MSS
Abstract
Preclinical evidence demonstrates that senescent cells accumulate with aging and that senolytics delay multiple age-related morbidities, including bone loss. Thus, we conducted a phase 2 randomized controlled trial of intermittent administration of the senolytic combination dasatinib plus quercetin (D + Q) in postmenopausal women (n = 60 participants). The primary endpoint, percentage changes at 20 weeks in the bone resorption marker C-terminal telopeptide of type 1 collagen (CTx), did not differ between groups (median (interquartile range), D + Q -4.1% (-13.2, 2.6), control -7.7% (-20.1, 14.3); P = 0.611). The secondary endpoint, percentage changes in the bone formation marker procollagen type 1 N-terminal propeptide (P1NP), increased significantly (relative to control) in the D + Q group at both 2 weeks (+16%, P = 0.020) and 4 weeks (+16%, P = 0.024), but was not different from control at 20 weeks (-9%, P = 0.149). No serious adverse events were observed. In exploratory analyses, the skeletal response to D + Q was driven principally by women with a high senescent cell burden (highest tertile for T cell p16 (also known as CDKN2A) mRNA levels) in which D + Q concomitantly increased P1NP (+34%, P = 0.035) and reduced CTx (-11%, P = 0.049) at 2 weeks, and increased radius bone mineral density (+2.7%, P = 0.004) at 20 weeks. Thus, intermittent D + Q treatment did not reduce bone resorption in the overall group of postmenopausal women. However, our exploratory analyses indicate that further studies are needed testing the hypothesis that the underlying senescent cell burden may dictate the clinical response to senolytics.
Keywords
Humans, Female, Postmenopause, Middle Aged, Aged, Bone and Bones, Quercetin, Dasatinib, Procollagen, Collagen Type I, Senotherapeutics, Peptide Fragments, Cyclin-Dependent Kinase Inhibitor p16, Bone Density, Biomarkers, Bone Resorption, Peptides, Cellular Senescence
Published Open-Access
yes
Recommended Citation
Farr, Joshua N; Atkinson, Elizabeth J; Achenbach, Sara J; et al., "Effects of Intermittent Senolytic Therapy on Bone Metabolism in Postmenopausal Women: A Phase 2 Randomized Controlled Trial" (2024). Faculty, Staff and Students Publications. 8393.
https://digitalcommons.library.tmc.edu/baylor_docs/8393
Comments
ClinicalTrials.gov identifier: NCT04313634.