Disclosed is a method of using Netrin-1 (NTN1) driven rejuvenation of an aged hematopoietic
system based on its shown dependency of reestablishing integrity of aged
bone marrow niche and reactivating
DNA damage response (DDR). NTN1 is shown as a master
regulator of reactivating
DNA damage response (DDR) pathways. Every organ / tissue accumulates
DNA damage that is an underlying cause of diseases. Reactivating DDR has an extensive effect on treating diseases. NTN1 serves as a therapeutic modality that effectively reverses age-related hematopoietic deficiencies while simultaneously targeting growth and survival of acute myelogenous
leukemia (AML). The ability to target and
gene correct hematopoietic stem cells (HSC)
ex vivo for the treatment of hemoglobinopathies, like
thalassemia and
sickle cell anemia, is limited due to inability of transducing the correct
cell population. NTN1 is shown to maintain and expand bona fide HSCs, opening up the possibility to transduce a true
stem cell overcoming previous limitations.