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Aging is associated with declines in cognitive performance, which are mediated in part by neuroinflammation, characterized by astrocyte activation and higher levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines; however, the upstream drivers are unknown. We investigated the potential role of the gut microbiome–derived metabolite trimethylamine N-oxide (TMAO) in modulating neuroinflammation and cognitive function with aging. Study 1: In middle-aged and older humans (65 ± 7 years), plasma TMAO levels were inversely related to performance on NIH Toolbox Cognition Battery tests of memory and fluid cognition (both r2 = 0.07, p < 0.05). Study 2: In mice, TMAO concentrations in plasma and the brain increased in parallel with aging (r2 = 0.60), suggesting TMAO crosses the blood-brain barrier. The greater TMAO concentrations in old mice (27 months) were associated with higher brain pro-inflammatory cytokines and markers of astrocyte activation vs. young adult mice (6 months). Study 3: To determine if TMAO independently induces an “aging-like” decline in cognitive function, young mice (6 months) were supplemented with TMAO in chow for 6 months. Compared with controls, TMAO-supplemented mice performed worse on the novel object recognition test, indicating impaired memory and learning, and had increased neuroinflammation and markers of astrocyte activation. Study 4: Human astrocytes cultured with TMAO vs. control media exhibited changes in cellular morphology and protein markers consistent with astrocyte activation, indicating TMAO directly acts on these cells. Our results provide translational insight into a novel pathway that modulates neuroinflammation and cognitive function with aging, and suggest that TMAO might be a promising target for prevention of neuroinflammation and cognitive decline with aging.

Aging is associated with vascular endothelial dysfunction, reduced exercise tolerance, and impaired whole‐body glucose metabolism. Interleukin‐37 (IL‐37), an anti‐inflammatory cytokine of the interleukin‐1 family, exerts salutary physiological effects in young mice independent of its inflammation‐suppressing properties. Here, we assess the efficacy of IL‐37 treatment for improving physiological function in older age. Old mice (26–28 months) received daily intraperitoneal injections of recombinant human IL‐37 (recIL‐37; 1 µg/200 ml PBS) or vehicle (200 ml PBS) for 10–14 days. Vascular endothelial function (ex vivo carotid artery dilation to increasing doses of acetylcholine, ACh) was enhanced in recIL‐37 vs. vehicle‐treated mice via increased nitric oxide (NO) bioavailability (all p < .05); this effect was accompanied by enhanced ACh‐stimulated NO production and reduced levels of reactive oxygen species in endothelial cells cultured with plasma from IL‐37‐treated animals (p < .05 vs. vehicle plasma). RecIL‐37 treatment increased endurance exercise capacity by 2.4‐fold, which was accompanied by a 2.9‐fold increase in the phosphorylated AMP‐activated kinase (AMPK) to AMPK ratio (i.e., AMPK activation) in quadriceps muscle. RecIL‐37 treatment also improved whole‐body insulin sensitivity and glucose tolerance (p < .05 vs. vehicle). Improvements in physiological function occurred without significant changes in plasma, aortic, and skeletal muscle pro‐inflammatory proteins (under resting conditions), whereas pro‐/anti‐inflammatory IL‐6 was greater in recIL‐37‐treated animals. Plasma metabolomics analysis revealed that recIL‐37 treatment altered metabolites related to pathways involved in NO synthesis (e.g., increased L‐arginine and citrulline/arginine ratio) and fatty acid metabolism (e.g., increased pantothenol and free fatty acids). Our findings provide experimental support for IL‐37 therapy as a novel strategy to improve diverse physiological functions in old age. Physiological function declines with aging, increasing risk of chronic diseases and disability. We show for the first time that treatment with a novel anti‐inflammatory compound interleukin‐37 (IL‐37) improves multiple physiological functions in old mice, and identify potential roles of reduced superoxide production, improved oxidative metabolism and circulating factors in mediating improvements. Our findings support IL‐37 therapy as a novel strategy for improving diverse physiological functions in old age.

Age-related increases in aortic stiffness, assessed by pulse wave velocity (PWV), predict cardiovascular (CV)-related mortality, but the upstream drivers are incompletely understood. Purpose To determine if higher circulating levels of the gut microbiome-derived metabolite trimethylamine- N -oxide (TMAO) contribute to age-related aortic stiffening. Methods and Results Plasma TMAO concentrations were higher in healthy middle-aged-to-older (45–79 y; N = 83) vs. young (18–27 y; N = 14) humans (6.3 ± 0.6 vs. 1.8 ± 0.3 μM; p < 0.01) and positively related to carotid-femoral (c-f) PWV ( r 2 = 0.15, p < 0.0001). To determine the role of TMAO in established age-related aortic stiffness, we supplemented old mice (27 mo; N = 12–16/group) with 1% 3,3-dimethyl-1-butanol (DMB; suppresses microbiota-dependent TMAO production) in drinking water for 8–10 weeks vs. normal drinking water (control). Relative to young mice (3 mo; N = 23), old mice had higher aortic (a) PWV (412 ± 17 vs. 349 ± 11 cm/s; p < 0.01), but DMB had no effect on aPWV ( p = 0.58 vs. control) despite suppressing plasma TMAO (control: 8.7 ± 6.3 vs. DMB: 4.3 ± 1.2 µM, p = 0.07) to young levels (3.8 ± 2.6 µM). Next, to determine if TMAO contributes to the development of aortic stiffening, we initiated DMB at mid-life (18 mo; i.e., before the onset of stiffening; N = 8–21/age/treatment). aPWV was similar between young and 18 month-old mice (363 ± 5 cm/s; p = 0.58), but increased progressively with age in control mice (24 mo: 401 ± 13 cm/s, p = 0.03 vs. young; 27 mo: 442 ± 10 cm/s, p < 0.001 vs. young), whereas age-related increases in PWV were considerably attenuated by DMB (24 mo: 359 ± 9 cm/s; 27 mo: 388 ± 10 cm/s, both p < 0.01 vs. control). Conclusions Age-related increases in TMAO contribute to the development of aortic stiffness. TMAO-targeted interventions initiated in mid-life may prevent/delay age-related aortic stiffening and reduce CV risk. Funding HL134887-02S1, AG060884, HL140875, AG000279.