# Role of Senolytics in Lower Urinary Tract Aging and Voiding Disorders

> **NIH NIH R21** · UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT SCH OF MED/DNT · 2020 · $205,000

## Abstract

Project Summary/Abstract
Lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS), including urinary incontinence, overactive and underactive bladder,
affect over half of the elderly population and are detrimental to quality of life and independence. Current drug
therapies are mostly palliative, suboptimally effective and readily abandoned by patients and prescribers due to
undesirable side effects. Urinary control is a complex multi-component operation, with aging representing a
major risk factor and potential biological driver of altered voiding and incontinence in older adults. Senescent
cells are a cell type which accumulates in aging tissues, releasing a host of chemicals that can impair tissue
function. We have found evidence of these cells in bladder tissue. Together with published studies targeting
other tissues, this suggests that available drugs aimed at eliminating senescent cells could be the basis for
new therapies for urinary disorders associated with aging. In this exploratory project, we will use our aging
mouse model to confirm the presence of these cells and study the impact of maturation and aging on their
presence in bladder tissues. We will also test the ability of senolytics, drugs that can remove these cells, to
reduce senescent cell presence in bladders from old animals. Finally, we will test the ability to maintain or
recover youthful bladder function in old age using senolytics using our established aging mouse cystometry
model. Our findings will provide important directive and supportive data for future research into the
mechanisms of senescent cell involvement with aging and associated dysfunction, and may contribute to new
and more effective prevention and treatment for urinary disorders of later life.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9902307
- **Project number:** 5R21AG063528-02
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF CONNECTICUT SCH OF MED/DNT
- **Principal Investigator:** GEORGE A KUCHEL
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $205,000
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-04-15 → 2021-12-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9902307

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9902307, Role of Senolytics in Lower Urinary Tract Aging and Voiding Disorders (5R21AG063528-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9902307. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*