Immature Pear Extract Constituents Exert Multifaceted Anti-aging Effects

Abstract Cellular senescence causes a gradual loss of physiological functions and induces chronic diseases, which negatively affect the quality of human life. Intervention in the cellular senescence process may reduce the incidence of these diseases while delaying the progression of age-related diseases, thereby prolonging human lifespan. In our previous study, we found that extending the chronological lifespan of budding yeast cells, a suitable cellular model for research on mammalian cells, could be achieved by adding immature pear extract (iPE). Moreover, at the 2020 GSA meeting, using a colony-counting method, we reported that both hydrophilic (WiPE) and hydrophobic (OiPE) iPE components exhibited a chronological lifespan prolongation on yeast cells. In this study, the expression of sirtuin-related genes, which regulate cellular senescence, was verified by quantitative real-time reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction. Interestingly, sirtuin-related gene expression was significantly increased in the WiPE-treated cells only, and OiPE could extend the chronological lifespan of yeast cells through the mechanisms not involved in sirtuin-related gene expression. In general, hydrophobic and hydrophilic components exhibit different degradation and metabolism in cells. Since each component has a different strategy of absorption and excretion in the body, we hypothesize that iPE with multiple active components will have multifaceted effects on anti-aging. Our research on elucidating the mechanism of lifespan extension by OiPE and its application to mammalian cells is ongoing.