Rejuvenation: Could it be Key to Creating the Fountain of Youth?

In 2007,  Dr. Shinya Yamanaka, based in Japan, successfully converted normal cells with specialized functions into stem cells that can be manipulated into any cell type.  The process used four major molecules known as Yamanaka factors, later earning Dr. Yamanaka the 2012 Nobel Prize for Physiology and Medicine 

More than 15 years later, scientists have been studying and tweaking this method of cellular programming to usher in a new era of age reversal. By applying a limited dose of the Yamanaka factors, scientists are seeing that the procedure makes some of the organs in lab animals youthful. 

One of the key champions of this procedure, Richard Kausner, took to the stage during a June retreat held in San Diego—where he discussed groundbreaking data from unpublished experiments that showed sick mice bouncing back to health after undergoing the procedure. 

Specifically, Klausner was pitching medical rejuvenation—a process by which an old animal’s biological aging is reduced. As the chief scientist at Altos Labs, Klausner is at the center of the company’s innovative project known as rejuvenation programming.

The program focuses on resetting what is known as the epigenome—these are chemical marks on DNA that control which genes are turned on and off in a cell. During aging, these markers tend to move into the wrong positions, causing damage. This new method of reprogramming aims to flip these markers back, however, these risky changes could also lead to cancer.  

Currently, the main goal of Altos Lab is to understand the phenomenon, regulate it, and potentially apply it as a treatment for a number of age-related diseases. 

Klausner believes that this is possible because youthful cells exhibit more resilience towards biological stress when compared to old ones. And during the seminar, he even shared confidential slides showing how fat mice had recovered from diabetes after treatment, and how others were able to survive normally lethal doses of painkillers—thanks to a healthy dose of medical rejuvenation. 

Klaunser is confident that through this research, we could potentially turn back the clock. That’s because by making cells act healthier, younger, and more resilient, we could forestall the progression of several age-related diseases.