The Future of Health? Exploring Translational Geroscience
Translational geroscience could prevent age-related diseases at their origin: Image by Tung Lam.
- Advances in translational geroscience (science of understanding of the biological aging process) could help prevent or delay multiple age-related diseases at once.
- Data suggests drugs like rapamycin (Rapa) and metformin may delay or even reverse age-related diseases in human and non-human animals.
- This novel approach to aging could mean people stay healthy and active for much longer, resulting in improvements to both healthspan and lifespan.
- Research suggests that focusing on the root causes of aging (prevention) is a better approach than just treating diseases as they occur.
Translational Geroscience: A New Model for Medicine
Prepare for a shift from the traditional disease-specific approach by medics to one that’s more focused on aging. Scientists believe that the old way of treating age-related diseases one by one is ending. The time has come to move away from sick care to healthcare. This is where translational geroscience comes in. It’s a cutting-edge field that hopes to revolutionize medicine forever, but how does it work?
The idea is to target the aging process itself. Imagine hacking the root cause of heart disease and other age-related conditions in advance. This 2020 research from Seattle suggests the solution for living longer, healthier lives is to address the why behind aging. Up till now, the focus has been to treat, not prevent, the diseases that typically show up as we grow old.
Healthspan vs. Lifespan: The New Goals of Medicine
The primary focus of translational geroscience is to extend the length of time a person stays healthy. The longer we stay healthy and active (healthspan), the better our chances of living a long life (lifespan). So, by targeting the aging process, this field aims to compress the period of frailty and illness. This feat would allow people and other animals to enjoy good health in old age and live longer. How is this possible?
Meet the Anti-Aging All-Stars: Rapamycin & Metformin
Rapamycin: This is not a new substance. Rapamycin, also known as Rapa, has been an FDA-approved transplant drug since 1999. It appears that Rapa has potential anti-aging properties as well. Trials have already seen it double the lifespan of mice. Scientists now think it could also delay or even reverse problems that come with aging. Some of those include conditions like cancer, weight gain, and memory loss.
Metformin: Like Rapa, metformin is an FDA-approved drug, but as a diabetes treatment. In the US, the medical profession has used metformin since 1994. How it could work as a lifespan solution is less clear-cut in terms of how it might help people live longer. That’s because metformin’s lifespan effects in animal tests have been less consistent than Rapa. Despite that, it’s still a promising contender, and there are hints it may help us age better.
This table summarizes both drug experiments and results in longevity trials.
| Drug | Experiment Details | Results |
|---|---|---|
| Rapamycin | Short-term treatment in mice beginning late in life | Increased life expectancy by over 50% |
| Various studies on rodents (mice and rats) to see if they can live longer | Delayed/reversed cancers, obesity, renal/hepatic dysfunction, immune senescence, cognitive decline, and heart disease | |
| Metformin | Mixed results in mouse studies: varied doses tested in an inbred strain of lab mouse (C57BL/6Nia) | Lower dose increased lifespan by ~5%, higher dose shortened lifespan by ~10% |
| National Institute on Aging Interventions Testing Program in genetically heterogeneous UMHET3 mice | No significant effect on lifespan | |
| Epidemiological data in diabetics | Lower death risks compared to other anti-diabetes medications; may reduce mortality risks more than in non-diabetics not taking metformin. | |
| Lifespan extension in tiny worms (C. elegans) and cancer-prone mice | Promoted lifespan through a mild stress trick (mitohormesis) via a protein (PRDX-2). |
Clinical Trials and Future Directions
The stronger one’s natural defenses, the easier it is for the body to fight off infections. It seems that Rapa has a way of revving up immunity in older adults. In other words, it offers a significant boost to the immune system. Another study saw how rapamycin helped maintain healthy hearts in older dogs. This outcome aligned with previous research in mouse trials.
Metformin research is entering a new chapter. A big clinical trial called TAME is underway to see if the drug can delay health problems in older people. If it works, this trial could open the door for many more anti-aging treatments. Scientists hope to find that we can work on aging as we do with disease. The only difference is that the former prevents while the latter treats.
The 9 Hallmarks of Aging—According to Science
Translational geroscience scientists have recognized nine hallmarks of aging. These are the things that typically happen to our bodies as we get older:
#1 Genomic Instability (damaged instructions): The body’s instruction manual is in its (DNA). It’s natural for DNA to accumulate a little damage over time.
#2 Telomere Attrition (the protective caps at the ends of DNA strands). The chromosomes (telomeres) wear down, like the plastic tips on shoelaces.
#3 Epigenetic Alterations (mixed messaging): Cells become confused as the chemical tags on our DNA get misplaced.
#4 Loss of Proteostasis (folding problems): Proteins stop folding as they used to. This aging process makes it harder for your cells to function optimally.
#5 Deregulated Nutrient Sensing (confused eating signals): Cells get confused signals about how much to eat, leading to various health problems.
#6 Mitochondrial Dysfunction (cell powerhouse problems): The cell’s power plants (mitochondria) stop working as well.
#7 Cellular Senescence (stubborn cells): Some cells stop dividing, causing health issues.
#8 Stem Cell Exhaustion: Your body’s repair crew (stem cells) gets tired and less effective.
#9 Altered Intercellular Communication (think cell phone signal issues): The body’s cells have trouble talking to each other.
By targeting these nine hallmarks of aging, scientists think it’s possible for translational geroscience to help people stay healthy and live longer!
Final Thoughts: Anti-Aging Science from Lab to Life
Research on aging (translational geroscience) is making big leaps forward. Scientists are moving their discoveries from the lab to real-world treatments for people. Early signs are encouraging, to say the least. This step from bench to bedside suggests these novel anti-aging therapies could work.
Imagine a future where medicine helps to keep us healthy and disease-free for longer. This is real healthcare and the opposite of a sick care system that only treats us when we’re unwell. That’s the exciting potential and, hopefully, the reality of translational geroscience.
