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Longevity biotech firm BioAge Labs is readying itself for clinical trials after raising a whopping $90 million Series C funding round. The company revealed it will be moving its lead platform-derived therapies, BGE-117 and BGE-175, into Phase 2 clinical trials in the first half of 2021.

Longevity. Technology: As the developer of an AI platform that maps the molecular pathways impacting human Longevity, we’ve followed developments at BioAge with great interest. With two compounds ready to enter the clinic next year, and more on the way, this company is fast-becoming one of Longevity’s most exciting prospects.

The new funds will be used to develop BioAge’s portfolio of therapies for increasing healthspan and lifespan, as well as to augment its AI platform, and further expand its capabilities to test drug candidates in predictive models of human diseases of aging.

Researchers claim to have reversed ageing in mice. It has long been believed that if we understand the causes of ageing, it may be possible to reverse it. New work on mice shows that it is possible to cure vision loss caused by old age or injury. Researchers think that this effect may depend on rewinding the ‘biological clock’ which marks the age of cells, suggesting that the cells in the eye have been made functionally younger.

Read the paper here: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-020-2975-4

Continue reading “Rewinding the biological clock: How to reverse ageing” »

Harvard Medical School scientists have successfully restored vision in mice by turning back the clock on aged eye cells in the retina to recapture youthful gene function.

The team’s work, described Dec. 2 in Nature, represents the first demonstration that it may be possible to safely reprogram complex tissues, such as the nerve cells of the eye, to an earlier age.

In addition to resetting the cells’ aging clock, the researchers successfully reversed vision loss in animals with a condition mimicking human glaucoma, a leading cause of blindness around the world.

Simulations that model molecular interactions have identified an enzyme that could be targeted to reverse a natural aging process called cellular senescence. The findings were validated with laboratory experiments on skin cells and skin equivalent tissues, and published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

“Our research opens the door for a new generation that perceives aging as a reversible biological phenomenon,” says Professor Kwang-Hyun Cho of the Department of Bio and Brain engineering at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), who led the research with colleagues from KAIST and Amorepacific Corporation in Korea.

Cells respond to a variety of factors, such as oxidative stress, DNA damage, and shortening of the telomeres capping the ends of chromosomes, by entering a stable and persistent exit from the cell cycle. This process, called cellular senescence, is important, as it prevents damaged cells from proliferating and turning into cancer cells. But it is also a natural process that contributes to aging and age-related diseases. Recent research has shown that cellular senescence can be reversed. But the laboratory approaches used thus far also impair tissue regeneration or have the potential to trigger malignant transformations.

https://www.BetaGlucanShop.com — Natural killer cells (NK cells) are the most aggressive cells of your immune system and kills through apoptosis, also known as programmed cell death. These innate immune cells are key players against viral infections and cancer growth.

Natural killer cells help prevent metastasis by killing abnormal cells and tumour cells. Metastasis is the spread of cancer from one part of the body to another. Beta glucans are used in immunotherapy as they may help (depending on type) the immune system distinguish between healthy and abnormal cells like cancer cells, and thus direct the immune cells to engage cancer cells.

Continue reading “Innate immune system: Natural killer cells and cancer” »

Just a few doses of an experimental drug can reverse age-related declines in memory and mental flexibility in mice, according to a new study by UC San Francisco scientists. The drug, called ISRIB, has already been shown in laboratory studies to restore memory function months after traumatic brain injury (TBI), reverse cognitive impairments in Down Syndrome, prevent noise-related hearing loss, fight certain types of prostate cancer, and even enhance cognition in healthy animals.

In the new study, published December 1, 2020 in the open-access journal eLife, researchers showed rapid restoration of youthful cognitive abilities in aged mice, accompanied by a rejuvenation of brain and immune cells that could help explain improvements in brain function.

“ISRIB’s extremely rapid effects show for the first time that a significant component of age-related cognitive losses may be caused by a kind of reversible physiological “blockage” rather than more permanent degradation,” said Susanna Rosi, Ph.D., Lewis and Ruth Cozen Chair II and professor in the departments of Neurological Surgery and of Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Science.

Turning off a newly identified enzyme could reverse a natural aging process in cells.

Research findings by a KAIST team provide insight into the complex mechanism of cellular senescence and present a potential therapeutic strategy for reducing age-related diseases associated with the accumulation of senescent cells.

Simulations that model molecular interactions have identified an enzyme that could be targeted to reverse a natural aging process called cellular senescence. The findings were validated with laboratory experiments on skin cells and skin equivalent tissues, and published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

Cellular reprogramming can reverse the aging that leads to a decline in the activities and functions of mesenchymal stem/stromal cells (MSCs). This is something that scientists have known for a while. But what they had not figured out is which molecular mechanisms are responsible for this reversal. A study released today in STEM CELLS appears to have solved this mystery. It not only enhances the knowledge of MSC aging and associated diseases, but also provides insight into developing pharmacological strategies to reduce or reverse the aging process.

The research team, made up of scientists at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, relied on cellular reprogramming — a commonly used approach to reverse cell aging — to establish a genetically identical young and old cell model for this study. “While agreeing with previous findings in MSC rejuvenation by cellular reprogramming, our study goes further to provide insight into how reprogrammed MSCs are regulated molecularly to ameliorate the cellular hallmarks of aging,” explained lead investigator, Wan-Ju Li, Ph.D., a faculty member in the Department of Orthopedics and Rehabilitation and the Department of Biomedical Engineering.

Kewl… ~~~ “Led by Associate Professor Alfredo Franco-Obregón from the NUS Institute for Health Innovation and Technology (iHealthtech), the team found that a protein known as TRPC1 responds to weak oscillating magnetic fields. Such a response is normally activated when the body exercises. This responsiveness to magnets could be used to stimulate muscle recovery, which could improve the life quality for patients with impaired mobility, in an increasingly aging society.”

As people age, they progressively lose muscle mass and strength, and this can lead to frailty and other age-related diseases. As the causes for the decline remain largely unknown, promoting muscle health is an area of great research interest. A recent study led by the researchers from NUS has shown how a molecule found in muscles responds to weak magnetic fields to promote muscle health.

Led by Associate Professor Alfredo Franco-Obregón from the NUS Institute for Health Innovation and Technology (iHealthtech), the team found that a protein known as TRPC1 responds to weak oscillating magnetic fields. Such a response is normally activated when the body exercises. This responsiveness to magnets could be used to stimulate muscle recovery, which could improve the life quality for patients with impaired mobility, in an increasingly aging society.

Continue reading “Molecule that promotes muscle health when magnetised” »