People have been struggling for centuries to find the fountain of youth. As the tech industry evolved, Silicon Valley engineers became obsessed with developing ways to stop the human aging process. What started with cycling and fasting began taking dozens of pills every morning, injecting stem cells into her brain and even infusing her body with the blood of young men. There is obviously no scientific evidence for such treatments. However, some beginnings They are already seeing good results in treatments that have been shown to prolong the lifespan of dogs.

It is hoped that if such treatments work in animals, scientists and regulators will be more willing to use similar techniques in humans.

Dogs that live longer. With recent research showing that the lifespan of worms, flies and mice has increased or even doubled, we can say that the formula for extending the lifespan of animals has already arrived. Founded in 2019, the company Loyal develops drugs to delay the aging of dogs and extend their healthy lifespan. It has raised around 58 million euros and has two drugs under development. In a few years, they hope to have the first commercial anti-aging drug for any species.

However, regulators such as the U.S. Food and Drug Administration have not yet recognized aging as a treatable condition. We’ll have to wait a little longer for that.

Why in pets? Unfortunately, the chances of success for these treatments are usually very low. 90% of drugs on the market fail in clinical trials. But doing these with dogs is cheaper and more work can be done than with humans. Also, because they live less, it doesn’t take decades to figure out if a pill can extend an animal’s lifespan. And at least when it comes to lifestyle, a dog will always be more human than a mouse.

What does the scientific literature say? In 1993, a team of molecular biologists from the University of California, San Francisco, showed that a single gene in the nematode worm was partially disabled. caenorhabditis elegans It can double its lifespan. Other researchers did the same, this time tracking genes related to longevity and the biochemical pathways they control. Interestingly, these mechanisms used in worms can also prolong life in flies and mice. In laboratories around the world, it has been concluded that aging is not just an inevitable deterioration, but another genetic biological process that can be “hacked” by scientists.

In fact, DNA repair mechanisms help head whales, one of the longest-lived mammals, live 200 years or more. It appears to slow biological time in mole rats and some turtles, making them more resistant to age-related diseases. Some drugs achieve this effect by increasing cell signals that increase when food is scarce, mimicking the effects of a calorie-restricted diet.

How does it work? In this case, Loyal bases its research precisely on these pioneering studies of worms. In many species, including dogs, they manipulate a hormone called insulin-like growth factor 1, which adjusts an animal’s growth and metabolic response to food. Playing this way allowed dogs, flies, worms and mice to prolong their lifespan.

They are now preparing two drugs: one that can delay the onset of age-related diseases such as dementia and kidney failure, two reasons why owners euthanize their animals in some cases. The second drug, slowly released by an implant, can reduce cellular processes that are thought to doom larger dog breeds to be short-lived.

Disposition. Loyal isn’t the only team extending the life of dogs. The Canine Aging Project, led by the University of Washington and the Texas A&M College of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences, has spent years researching the phenomenon and has already completed two studies in which owners were given either rapamycin or placebo pills without being told which was which. People who gave the drug to their dogs said their pets became more active later in life.

Image: Remove Splash