Efficacy of silicon-based agent against aging-related frailty.

Abstract

Increasing aging populations globally have made maintaining a healthy life expectancy for older adults a critical issue. Older adults are particularly susceptible to frailty, physical and mental vulnerability caused by age-related decline in physiological and psychological resilience. Preventing its onset is essential for extending a healthy lifespan. Declines in antioxidant capacity contributes to frailty; therefore, administration of antioxidants may help prevent or treat this condition. Silicon (Si)-based agent reacts with water to produce hydrogen, which selectively scavenges deleterious reactive oxygen species. Oral Si-based agent administration can effectively alleviate symptoms in various disease models associated with oxidative stress, including Parkinson's disease, ulcerative colitis, facial nerve palsy, and small intestinal ischemia-reperfusion injury. We investigated whether a Si-based agent could prevent or ameliorate frailty associated with aging using klotho mice, a premature aging model, and 105-week-old C57BL/6J mice. In klotho mice, the Si-based agent significantly alleviated age-related physical changes, including kyphosis and deterioration of coat conditions, and frailty-related somatic symptoms, including decreased spontaneous activity and motor function. Moreover, multicriteria frailty classification revealed fewer frail and pre-frail phenotypes in Si-based agent-treated klotho mice than in untreated mice. In aged C57BL/6J mice, the Si-based agent mitigated oxidative stress, suppressed motor performance and body weight decline, and reduced early mortality associated with age-related deterioration. Si-based agent may represent a potential strategy for combating frailty.