Mapping the unicellular transcriptome of the ascending thoracic aorta to changes in mechanosensing and mechanoadaptation during aging

Abstract

Aortic stiffening is an inevitable manifestation of chronological aging, yet the mechano-molecular programs that orchestrate region- and layer-specific adaptations along the length and through the wall of the aorta are incompletely defined. Here, we show that the decline in passive cyclic distensibility is more pronounced in the ascending thoracic (ATA) compared to distal segments of the aorta and that tissues in both the medial and adventitial compartments of the ATA stiffen during aging. Single-cell RNA sequencing of aged ATA tissues reveals altered cellular senescence, remodeling, and inflammatory responses accompanied by enrichment of T-lymphocytes and rarefaction of vascular smooth muscle cells, compared to young samples. T-lymphocytes accumulate in the adventitia and likely promote fibrosis, while activation of mechanosensitive piezo-1 enhances medial vasoconstriction. These results portray the immuno-mechanical aging of the ATA as a process that culminates in a stiffer conduit permissive to the accrual of multi-gerogenic signals priming to disease development.