Scientists find an immune “false alarm” that may drive rapid aging

Scientists have discovered that some severe genetic disorders linked to rapid aging may be driven not just by damaged DNA, but by the body’s overreaction to that damage. When broken DNA fragments leak into the wrong part of a cell, an immune sensor called cGAS can mistake them for signs of a viral infection, triggering chronic inflammation and even interfering with DNA repair itself. Scientists find an immune “false alarm” that may drive rapid aging.

By reducing the activity of this sensor, scientists were able to improve tissue health across several biological systems, challenging long-held ideas about how DNA damage drives degeneration. The immune system aims to recognize and eliminate threats such as viruses. But under certain conditions, that protective machinery can mistakenly react to the body’s own damaged DNA.

When fragments of DNA are treated as if they came from an invading virus, the resulting immune response can trigger chronic inflammation that harms healthy tissue. Itamar Harel at Hebrew University, working with Prof. Ido Ben-Ami (Hebrew University and Sha’are Zedek Medical Center), and Prof.