Impaired iron recycling from erythrocytes is an early hallmark of aging.

Aging affects iron homeostasis, as evidenced by tissue iron loading and anemia in the elderly. Iron needs in mammals are met primarily by iron recycling from senescent red blood cells (RBCs), a task chiefly accomplished by splenic red pulp macrophages (RPMs) via erythrophagocytosis. Given that RPMs continuously process iron, their cellular functions might be susceptible to age-dependent decline, a possibility that has been unexplored to date.