Saying no to drugs: fasting protects hematopoietic stem cells from chemotherapy and aging

Aging and chemotherapeutics damage hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs), leading to dysregulation of asymmetric division and subsequent immunosuppression and blood-related diseases. In this issue, Cheng et al. (2014) use prolonged fasting as a medical intervention to decrease IGF-1/PKA signaling and protect HSCs against chemotherapeutic toxicity and promote rejuvenation.

(Source: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24905161)