Shining the Light on Senescence Associated LncRNAs

Cellular senescence can be described as a complex stress response that leads to irreversible cell cycle arrest. This process was originally described as an event that primary cells go through after many passages of cells during cell culture. More recently, cellular senescence is viewed as a programmed process by which the cell displays a senescence phenotype when exposed to a variety of stresses. Cellular senescence has been implicated in tumor suppression and aging such that senescence may contribute to both tumor progression and normal tissue repair. Here, we review different forms of cellular senescence, as well as current biomarkers used to identify senescent cells in vitro and in vivo. Additionally, we highlight the role of senescence-associated long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs).