Impact
Manuel Serrano is a molecular biologist at Altos Labs' Cambridge Institute of Science whose work links two central themes of aging biology: cellular senescence and cellular reprogramming. He has worked on senescence for almost 30 years, beginning with his discovery of p16, the cyclin-dependent kinase inhibitor now widely used as a marker and driver of senescence. His group was the first to report that reprogramming to pluripotency can be achieved within living tissues, and showed that this process is strongly promoted by tissue damage signals, connecting senescence, injury and plasticity. His team now focuses on mechanisms of rejuvenation by partial, reversible reprogramming and its similarities with tissue repair, with the stated aim of finding pharmacological and dietary interventions that mimic partial reprogramming. Recent publications with collaborators address immune surveillance of senescent cells, including a 2026 Cell Metabolism study reporting that blocking PD-L2 prevents senescent cell accumulation and age-related dysfunction. For longevity readers he is a reference point for both senolytic-adjacent senescence biology and the in vivo reprogramming field.
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Sources & review · profile last updated 2026-09-29
- https://www.altoslabs.com/team/manuel-serrano 2026-09-23
- https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cmet.2026.08.014 2026-09-23
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s41577-026-01335-w 2026-09-23