Autophagy as a Promising Therapeutic Target in Age-Associated Neurodegenerative Disorders

Aging, and the reason for the process, has been an area of research where strides can improve the healthspan and lifespan of people all over the globe. Cellular senescence and cell death due to oxidative stress-mediated damage to macromolecules are the major reasons for aging as a process but certain factors increase and decrease the rate of aging. The process of autophagy contributes to the decrease of the rate of aging and also alleviates and prevents the symptoms of aging-induced neurodegenerative diseases. Therefore, targeting autophagy process and increasing its frequency can improve the pathologies of many age-associated neurodegenerative disorders; especially Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and Parkinson’s disease (PD). Practices like intermittent fasting and caloric restriction have shown to increase the rate of autophagy and, in turn, have shown promising results as therapeutic interventions in AD and PD. Administration of caloric restriction mimetics like spermidine, rapamycin, metformin, and fisetin have shown to improve cognitive functioning in AD and PD through autophagy activation.