Lifeboat Foundation

Earlier this year, we hosted the Ending Age-Related Diseases 2018 conference at the Cooper Union, New York City. This conference was designed to bring together the best in the aging research and biotech investment worlds and saw a range of industry experts sharing their insights.

Joe Betts Lacroix of Y Combinator and Vium discusses the different ways in which entrepreneurs can focus on overcoming the diseases of aging, namely direct, indirect, and money-first approaches, and the strengths and weakness of each.

Joe was the primary technical founder of hardware/software startup OQO, which entered the Guinness Book of World Records for building the smallest fully featured PC. His experience spans from biotech research to electronics design. Very experienced in invention, prosecution and monetization of intellectual property, he has over 80 patents granted and pending in fields ranging from biophysics and safety systems to antennas, thermal systems, user interfaces, and analog electronics. He has written numerous peer-reviewed publications in fields such as biophysics, genetics, electronics, and robotics. Joe holds a Harvard A.B., an MIT S.M. and a Caltech research fellowship.

A new publication from researchers at the University of Colorado Boulder shows how gut bacteria increase the risk of cardiovascular disease by contributing to the stiffening of the blood vessels during aging. This study is the first to demonstrate that changes to the gut microbiome promote vascular aging and harm health [1].

The researchers treated groups of young and old mice with a range of antibiotics that are known to kill gut bacteria. Following this, they examined the vascular systems of the mice, particularly the lining of the blood vessels (endothelium) and the stiffness in their large arteries. Additionally, the researchers measured a number of biomarkers, including free radicals, antioxidants, pro-inflammatory cytokines, and nitric oxide in the blood.

After 3–4 weeks of treatment, the researchers once again measured the biomarkers and looked at the vascular system. There was no change in the young group of mice; however, the old mice saw significant improvement in both vascular health and biomarkers. The researchers note that the treatment had suppressed the microbiome of the aged mice and, in doing so, improved their health. Therefore, they concluded that something in the microbiome of old mice was contributing to vascular aging.

These findings support the idea that cognitive decline is in part due to the aging of blood cells, which are produced in the bone marrow.

Abstract
Restoration of cognitive function in old mice by transfer of blood or plasma from young mice has been attributed to reduced C–C motif chemokine ligand 11 (CCL11) and β2-microglobulin, which are thought to suppress neurogenesis in the aging brain. However, the specific role of the hematopoietic system in this rejuvenation has not been defined and the importance of neurogenesis in old mice is unclear. Here we report that transplantation of young bone marrow to rejuvenate the hematopoietic system preserved cognitive function in old recipient mice, despite irradiation-induced suppression of neurogenesis, and without reducing β2-microglobulin. Instead, young bone marrow transplantation preserved synaptic connections and reduced microglial activation in the hippocampus. Circulating CCL11 levels were lower in young bone marrow recipients, and CCL11 administration in young mice had the opposite effect, reducing synapses and increasing microglial activation.

We have talked about the potential of partial cellular reprogramming in previous articles, and today, we want to draw attention to a new paper that promises to further refine reversal of epigenetic aging in cells.

As we age, our cells experience alterations to their epigenetic markers, and this changes gene expression, which is proposed to be a primary reason we age. Recently, there has been considerable interest in resetting these epigenetic markers to reverse cellular aging, and this paper builds on that.

Three of the study’s authors, Prof. Vittorio Sebastiano, Jay Sarkar, and Marco Quarta, have founded Turn.bio, a biotech company that is working to bring partial cellular reprogramming to humans. The company is also currently enjoying the leadership of Gary Hudson from Oisin Biotechnologies, who is standing in as CEO to help the company get off the ground and funded.

Continue reading “Partial Cellular Reprogramming to Reverse Cellular Aging” »

Another anti-aging analytic agency rated David Sinclair number one, but WTF is with his face!?! has a different opinion on how David looks like )

An intriguing new study, led by scientists from the University of Colorado Boulder, suggests an aging gut microbiome may be somewhat responsible for the degradation in cardiovascular heath that tends to appear as we grow older. The study is yet another addition to the growing body of evidence affirming the role gut bacteria plays in age-related disease.

“We’ve left Mike to the last of these announcements, but he’s a prime example of “last but not least” — indeed, he is the only speaker we’ve invited who was also an invited speaker last year. That’s no accident: this exploding and immensely diverse field boasts a huge number of stellar researchers, such that I could happily fill the program without repetition even if the meeting lasted a week. But Mike is the ultimate pioneer in our field: he was the first rejuvenation researcher, by well over a decade, to make a success of taking early-stage work into the private sector. He’s still at the absolute forefront of this crusade, and I’m eager to learn what he has to say this year”, says Aubrey de Grey.

https://www.undoing-aging.org/news/dr-mike-west-to-speak-at-undoing-aging-2019

#undoingaging #sens #foreverhealthy

This new method could open a major avenue towards the full regeneration of body parts.

A new study has revealed a method of switching the early growth response of DNA on and off, opening the future possibility of regenerating human body parts with the use of genetic editing.

Continue reading “Researchers Discover DNA Switch for Full Body Regeneration” »