MicroRNAs and the metabolic hallmarks of aging

- MicroRNAs are involved in deregulated nutrient sensing during aging.
- Deregulation of mitomiRs induces mitochondrial dysfunction during aging.
- Age-related metabolic inflammation is regulated by miRNAs.
- MicroRNAs are potentially involved in age-related microbiome changes.

Aging, the natural process of growing older, is characterized by a progressive deterioration of physiological homeostasis at the cellular, tissue, and organismal level. Metabolically, the aging process is characterized by extensive changes in body composition, multi-tissue/multi-organ insulin resistance, and physiological declines in multiple signaling pathways including growth hormone, insulin/insulin-like growth factor 1, and sex steroids regulation. With this review, we intend to consolidate published information about microRNAs that regulate critical metabolic processes relevant to aging. In certain occasions we uncover relationships likely relevant to aging, which has not been directly described before, such as the miR-451/AMPK axis. We have also included a provocative section highlighting the potential role in aging of a new designation of miRNAs, namely fecal miRNAs, recently discovered to regulate intestinal microbiota in mammals.