IT STARTS WHEN SOMETHING STRESSES YOU: Whether it’s air pollution or a virus, your cells launch into repair-and-recovery mode. As part of that process, the body whirs into action, producing proteins that help rebuild your cells and RNA, the chemical messengers that trigger the release of other health-promoting compounds. These RNA agents carry out the repair process by clumping together, forming stress granules.
When they do their job properly, these particles are actually beneficial, says Benjamin Wolozin, M.D., Ph.D., a professor of pharmacology and neurology at Boston University School of Medicine and a cofounder of Aquinnah Pharmaceuticals, a biotech company focused on neurodegenerative disease. Stress granules protect the cells from damage, essentially creating a temporary shelter so the body can better repair itself, he says. Once the stressor is…
