In this latest study, Semir Beyaz at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory in New York state and his colleagues wondered about the therapy’s potential for restoring function in an ageing intestine. They wanted to target senescent cells. These cells, which accumulate with age, have lost their ability to divide but remain metabolically active, releasing chemicals that promote inflammation and accelerate further ageing. To get to them, the team targeted a protein called uPAR, which is enriched on the surface of senescent cells.