Senescence-Associated Markers

Abstract Senescence is biological aging or maturation. It can be broadly divided into two types: cellular senescence and whole-organism senescence. In plants, the last stage of leaf development and programmed cell death (PCD) is a form of senescence. It is characterized by several properties, such as cell-irreversible proliferation disability, cell cycle arrest, and biochemical and morphological changes leading to a disturbed functional status at the cellular level. Senescent cells, whether from replicative senescence or stress-induced premature senescence, are mostly similar in their morphological characteristics. Biomarkers involved in the process of senescence at the cellular and molecular level have extraordinary significance. The prominence of senescence in aging has led to the investigation of several senescence biomarkers. Biomarkers of aging and cellular senescence are crucial to exploring the in-depth mechanism of senescence, so as to develop a way to delay or prevent senescence and thus diagnose other age-related diseases as well. Telomere shortening is one of the well-studied cellular senescence markers, and it is frequently accepted as senescence-associated markers. Besides telomere shortening, other senescence-associated markers are presented in this chapter. Most senescence markers, including telomere shortening, have few limits. However, when choosing a telomere measurement method, it is practical to consider consistency. Further development of advanced reliable biomarkers for senescence that may work both in vitro and in vivo on numerous tissues and species that could be of importance is desirable.