Ferrous-glutathione coupling mediates ferroptosis and frailty in Caenorhabditis elegans

Abstract

All eukaryotes require iron. Replication, detoxification, and a cancer-protective form of regulated cell death termed ferroptosis1, all depend on iron metabolism. Ferrous iron accumulates over adult lifetime in the Caenorhabditis elegans model of ageing2. Here we show that glutathione depletion is coupled to ferrous iron elevation in these animals, and that both occur in late life to prime cells for ferroptosis. We demonstrate that blocking ferroptosis, either by inhibition of lipid peroxidation or by limiting iron retention, mitigates age-related cell death and markedly increases lifespan and healthspan in C. elegans. Temporal scaling of lifespan is not evident when ferroptosis is inhibited, consistent with this cell death process acting at specific life phases to induce organismal frailty, rather than contributing to a constant ageing rate. Because excess age-related iron elevation in somatic tissue, particularly in brain3–5, is thought to contribute to degenerative disease6, 7, our data indicate that post-developmental interventions to limit ferroptosis may promote healthy ageing.