Mitochondrial DNA leakage in oocytes activates cGAS-STING signaling to drive ovarian aging — Stanford

The cGAS-STING signaling pathway contributes to low-grade inflammation in several tissues during aging; however, its role in the ovary was unclear. Here the authors show that aging oocytes leak mitochondrial DNA into the cytosol where it activates the cGAS-STING pathway, driving inflammatory signaling in oocytes as well as neighboring granulosa cells via cGAMP transfer. Inhibiting this pathway ameliorates ovarian aging.