# Ovarian derived exosomal miRNA as a juvenile protective factors

> **NIH NIH R56** · UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL FLORIDA · 2022 · $286,640

## Abstract

The long-term goal of our research is to identify the role of young ovaries in production of therapeutic juvenile
protective factors in form of exosomes carrying putative pro-longevity microRNAs (miRNAs). With the
growing population of elderly people, there is a growing incidence of age-related diseases including metabolic
syndrome, insulin resistance and diabetes mellitus. There is a well-established link between health and the
function of reproductive organs and longevity. Importantly, it was shown that transplanting young ovaries into
old mice delays aging and increases lifespan by over 40%. Unfortunately, the detailed mechanism by which
young ovaries provide these longevity benefits is still undetermined. One of the possible benefits could be
linked to an enhanced production of sex hormones, yet it was also shown that eliminating sex hormone
producing cells in ovaries before transplantation, still produced pro-longevity benefits. Importantly, for the
purpose of this proposal our novel findings suggest that ovaries express and secrete a variety of different
exosomes containing miRNAs that might play an important role in the stability of transcriptome in gonads and
diversity of different distant organs. Based on our findings we propose the general hypothesis is that young
ovaries increase healthspan and longevity by secreting exosomes enriched with miR-181b-5p and miR-1249-3p,
which target genes involved in insulin signaling. In the proposed studies we will investigate the effects of
ovaries from young or long-living animals on the production and secretion of putative pro-longevity miRNA
and the mechanism by which these miRNAs modulate high insulin sensitivity during aging. To test our
hypothesis we propose three specific aims:
Specific Aim 1: Determine if ovaries serve as a source of circulating factors that improve healthspan. Specific
Aim 2: Assess the influence of ovarian-derived miRNAs on insulin sensitivity Specific Aim 3: Determine the
ovarian secretory pattern of circulating exosomal miRNAs in mice and human ovaries.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10674254
- **Project number:** 1R56AG074499-01A1
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL FLORIDA
- **Principal Investigator:** MICHAL Mateusz MASTERNAK
- **Activity code:** R56 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $286,640
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2022-09-30 → 2023-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10674254

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10674254, Ovarian derived exosomal miRNA as a juvenile protective factors (1R56AG074499-01A1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-27 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10674254. Licensed CC0.

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