Short Rapamycin Therapy Extends Lifespan of Mice up to 60%
The results of a study published in the scientific journal eLife shows that mice treated for a short-time during mid life with Rapamycin lived up to 60% longer; to the human equivalent 140 years old.
The study, led by researchers at the University of Washington, isn't clear as to the reasons for the life extension outcome. One theory proposes that the short Rapamyacin treatment had a big enough impact to actually rejuvenate the mice back to an earlier biological age.
Rapamyacin is being studied by researchers around the globe for its myriad of uses. The intriguing bacterium was discovered in the soil beneath one of the mysterious stone heads on Easter Island in the 1970s. Rapamyacin has properties that make it a strong anti-fungal agent and it is also able to suppress or modulate the human immune system, enabling it to be used to help the body accept organ transplants. Research is also showing the bacterium seems capable of treating cancer and delaying the onset of aging and its associated diseases.
Rapamyacin is believed to inhibit aging by turning down mTOR, a cellular pathway that regulates cell growth and metabolism. When mTOR is turned down cells begin consuming old proteins via autophagy in a process similar to what happens during fasting. The autophagy process seems to clean up cumulative cellular damage, thereby reducing or suppressing the effects of aging.
Why this news is important
Rapamycin works well with only a short treatment and may therefore be a cheaper and easier to administer anti-aging treatment than expected.
Image credit and references
Image - Free stock photo of stone heads on Easter Island provided by Pixabay
Scientific Paper - Alessandro Bitto, et al., University of Washington, "Transient rapamycin treatment can increase lifespan and health span in middle-aged mice," eLife, August 23, 2016.
