With the advancement in modern medicine, people are living longer than ever. In fact, the average life expectancy has largely risen over the last 40 years, and is predicted to rise to 85 by the year 2060 (US Census: Population Estimates and Projections). But the real question is, why do we age and is there a way to reverse it? The quest for immortality is not a new one, but are we closer to obtaining it than we think? Scientists in academia, government agencies, and private biotechnology companies are spearheading research into the complexities of the aging process in an effort to manipulate it in our favor. Promising animal studies have demonstrated that the aging process can be targeted in a variety of different ways, and in doing so, the lifespan of animals can be extended. Some examples of therapies that increase lifespan in rodent models include:

Plasma therapy: In this study, scientists attached the circulatory systems of young and old mice together. By doing this, the old mice were exposed to circulating factors from the younger mice. After separating the circulatory systems, the authors found that the old mice exposed to the circulating factors from the young mice were healthier and lived longer.

Partial reprogramming: In a seminal study, scientists reversed aging at the cellular level by reprogramming older cells to look and behave like younger cells. This was achieved by introducing a cocktail of different transcription factors (proteins that read the DNA and produce genes) to mice, which ultimately extended how long they lived. Since this discovery in 2016, scientists have explored different cocktails of transcription factors and have increased lifespan in mice.

Senolytic therapy: Senolytic therapies are a class of drugs that target senescent cells for elimination. Senescence happens during the aging process and stops cells from dividing. During the aging process cells that have undergone senescence accumulate in the body. In a published study, scientists were able to demonstrate that senolytic therapy could increase how long mice lived. Dozens of papers have subsequently been published confirming these results in other rodent studies.

While the prospect of extending how long humans can live may seem like an attractive prospect, key regulatory hurdles exist that must be resolved before the general public can see these benefits. In this blog series, we will cover the regulatory complexities that scientists must overcome in order to reach patients with their potentially life extending new therapies, take a dive into the funding of the longevity research community, and even investigate the possibility of extending the lives of our pets.