aubrey de grey why you're helpless now but not for long
TRANSCRIPT
Aubrey D.N.J. de Grey, Ph.D.Chief Science Officer, SENS Research Foundation
[email protected]://www.sens.org/
Most infectious diseases have been easily prevented
Sanitation Vaccines Antibiotics Carrier control
Age-related diseases have not. Why not?
reduced light adaptationreduced ethanol metabolismaltered drug pharmacokineticssomatopauseloss of cardiac adaptabilityincontinenceimpaired wound healingidiopathic axonal polyneuropathyautonomic neuropathyarrhythmiachronic obstructive pulmonary disorderbenign prostatic hypertrophymenopauseleukoaraiosisstrokevascular dementiafrontotemporal dementiaimmunosenescenceanosmiacachexiaanorexia of agingsystolic hypertensionageusiaerectile dysfunctionorthostatic hypotensionimpaired adaptive beta-cell proliferationfibroblast collapseanergic T-cell clonescellular senescencevascular calcificationimpaired transdermal absorptionimpaired thermoregulationreduced tactile acuityimpaired vasoconstrictionloss of neuromuscular junctionsdelayed withdrawal reflex
impaired pH maintenancereduced chemical clearancealtered dermal immune cell residence and functionaberrant allergic and irritant reactionsloss of skin elasticityimpaired vitamin D synthesisreduced renal reserverenal cortex atrophygut dysbiosisloss of jejunal villus heightimpaired response to vaccinationimpaired thirstlentigo senilisthinning hairimpaired proprioceptionimpaired balancereduced vital capacityreduced cardiorespiratory enduranceimpaired sweat responseimpaired blood distributionnutrient malabsorptiondiverticular diseasepresbyphagiaincreased refluxalveolar lossneuronal losssenile emphysemadegenerative disc diseasejoint calcificationpineal calcificationaberrant differentiationgait instabilityfrontal demyelinationaxonal atrophyimpaired functional connectivityimpaired working memory
presbycusisosteoporosisosteoarthritisautoimmunitygreying hairpresbyopiacataractglaucomatemporal arteritispolymyalgia rheumaticawrinklingAlzheimer's diseasePick's diseasecorticobasal degenerationprogressive supranuclear palsyParkinson's diseasemultiple system atrophydementia with Lewy bodiessarcopeniaglomerulonephritissenile cardiac amyloidosisatherosclerosisarteriosclerosisage-related macular degenerationcardiomyopathydiastolic heart failurecancersystemic inflammationoxidative stressreduced coronary blood flowloss of cardiac reserveandropausethymic involutionreduced plasma renin activityreduced aldosteronereduced melatonin diurnal rhythm
Aging is the life-long accumulation of damage to the tissues, cells, and molecules of the body that occurs as an intrinsic side-effect of the body’s normal operation.
“Damage” is changes in structure and composition that the body cannot automatically reverse.
The body can tolerate some damage, but too much of it causes disease and disability.
PathologyMetabolism Damagelife-long late life
Diseases Aging
Communicable Congenital Age-related
TuberculosisMalaria
HIV…
Tay-SachsMELAS
Li-Fraumeni...
Alzheimer’sCancer
Atherosclerosis…
FrailtySarcopenia
Immunosenescence…
Diseases Aging
Communicable Congenital Specific General
TuberculosisMalaria
HIV…
Tay-SachsMELAS
Li-Fraumeni...
Alzheimer’sCancer
Atherosclerosis…
FrailtySarcopenia
Immunosenescence…
Pathology
Geriatrics
Metabolism Damagelife-long late life
Pathology
Gerontology Geriatrics
Metabolism Damagelife-long late life
Pathology
Gerontology Geriatrics
Metabolism Damage(life-long) (late life)
- Pre-therapy damage is not removed
- Can only activate pathways that exist
- Longer-lived species have weaker such pathways
Maintenance
Pathology
Gerontology Geriatrics
Metabolism DamageClaim: unlike the others, the maintenance approach can deliver a
big extension of human healthy lifespan quite soon
Damage type
Cell loss, cell atrophy
Division-obsessed cells
Death-resistant cells
Mitochondrial mutations
Intracellular junk
Extracellular junk
Extracellular matrix stiffening
The maintenance approach
Cell therapy, mainly
Telomerase/ALT gene deletion plus periodic stem cell reseeding
Suicide genes, immune stimulation
Allotopic expression of 13 proteins
Transgenic microbial hydrolases
Phagocytosis by immune stimulation
AGE-breaking molecules/enzymes
Existence of any 8th category is looking increasingly unlikely
This is our Research Advisory Board
See their names, their awesome credentials and their hard-hitting endorsement of our approach at:
www.sens.org/about/leadership/research-advisory-board
Bacterial enzyme protects from oxysterols (Biotech Bioeng, 2012)
Antibodies chop up cardiotoxic amyloid (J Biol Chem, 2014)
Nuclear copies rescue mutant mtDNA (Am J Human Gen, 2008)
Telomerase-KO HSCs rescue telomere-driven anaemia (2014)
Much more ongoing in our research centre and funded labs
Endothelial cell
Lipid-engorged lysosome
Foamcell
Mathieu et al., Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2012; 109:2409
In the short term…We must reorganise our medical research to recognise that the treatment of aging is synonymous with preventing age-related disease and disability. Some progressive thinkers at NIH are attempting this, but progress is predictably glacial.
In the medium term…
Success in developing genuinely effective preventative geriatrics will place it at the heart of medical practice, eliminating the underlying causes of age-related disease.
Long term result:- Nobody gets Alzheimer’s
- Nobody gets heart attacks
- Or cancer, osteoporosis, arthritis, diabetes…
- Age-related diseases are eliminated, with dramatic
consequences for healthspan (and lifespan, yes)
Overpopulation?
Inequality of access?
Immortal dictators?
Boredom?
Pensions collapse?
Overpopulation?
Inequality of access?
Immortal dictators?
Boredom?
Pensions collapse?
No age-related ill-health
Elderly contribute wealth
Energy to explore novelty
Flexible career structure
Not a burden on your kids
Available at Amazon and all good book stores.
Paperback is cheaper, and has an extra chapter!
Visit us on the web athttp://www.sens.org/
Read this (semi-technical) book
Drop us a line [email protected]
Your challenge: learn more, and help!
