Longevity

If mitochondrial decline sits near the center of aging, the interesting question is how researchers are trying to address it. The research splits into three distinct strategies — protect the structure, restore the metabolic inputs, and strengthen the signals — and seeing them together is the best map of the field.

They are both mitochondrial peptides, and they are almost opposites — one a natural signal that tells cells to adapt, the other a synthetic molecule that physically stabilizes the membrane. Comparing them is the clearest way to see how many angles mitochondrial medicine really has.