Systemic overexpression of C-C motif chemokine ligand 2 promotes metabolic dysregulation and premature death in mice with accelerated aging

Injection of tissues with senescent cells induces changes that mimic aging, and this process is delayed in mice engineered to eliminate senescent cells, which secrete proinflammatory cytokines, including C-C motif chemokine ligand 2 (Ccl2). Circulating levels of Ccl2 correlate with age, but the impact of Ccl2 on tissue homeostasis has not been established. We generated an experimental model by crossbreeding mice overexpressing Ccl2 with progeroid mice bearing a mutation in the lamin A (Lmna) gene. Wild-type animals and progeroid mice that do not overexpress Ccl2 were used as controls. Ccl2 overexpression decreased the lifespan of the progeroid mice and induced the dysregulation of glycolysis, the citric acid cycle and one-carbon metabolism in skeletal muscle, driving dynamic changes in energy metabolism and DNA methylation. This impact on cellular bioenergetics was associated with mitochondrial alterations and affected cellular metabolism, autophagy and protein synthesis through AMPK/mTOR pathways. The data revealed the ability of Ccl2 to promote death in mice with accelerated aging, which supports its putative use as a biomarker of an increased senescent cell burden and for the assessment of the efficacy of interventions aimed at extending healthy aging.