Combating ageing and physical decline, once deemed inevitable, has now been reduced to a treatable issue with a new drug developed by scientists.
Researchers state that their experimental drug extends the lifespan of middle-aged mice by up to 25% and could have a similar impact on humans.
Scientists from the Medical Research Council Laboratory of Molecular Biology (MRC LMS), Imperial College London, and Duke-NUS Medical School in Singapore injected 75-week-old mice with an anti-IL-11 antibody.
Sky News reported that the anti-IL-11 antibody injection increased not only the lifespan of the mice but also nearly cured diseases caused by fibrosis, chronic inflammation, and poor metabolism, which are signs of ageing.
According to results published in the journal Nature, the treated mice lived an average of 155 weeks, 35 weeks longer than untreated mice.
Professor Stuart Cook, the lead scientist of the study, said, “These findings are very exciting.” He added, “While these findings are in mice, they tantalize the possibility that drugs could have a similar impact on ageing humans.”
Scientists emphasized that treated mice had fewer cancers and lacked typical signs of ageing and frailty. Additionally, researchers observed reduced muscle atrophy and improved muscle strength, which is unprecedented.
The study indicates that “silencing” the interleukin-11 (IL-11) protein can increase the healthy lifespan of mice by nearly 25%.
Researchers have been studying IL-11 for years. In 2018, they first demonstrated that IL-11 is a pro-fibrotic and pro-inflammatory protein.
According to the journal Nature, this protein’s production increases significantly in humans after about 55 years of age. It is associated with chronic inflammation, organ fibrosis, metabolic disorders, muscle wasting (sarcopenia), frailty, and cardiac fibrosis.
Meanwhile, this breakthrough study provides a promising avenue for combating ageing and related diseases in humans. While more research is needed, the findings offer hope for developing treatments that can extend a healthy lifespan and improve quality of life as people age.
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