September 2020 Longevity Review

Posted by Chris Pollyanna , 26 October 2020 · 1,818 views

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Hello and welcome again to this month’s longevity review. After last month’s focus on more further off longevity treatments such as gene therapy, this month the focus has shifted to more readily available drugs. Old stalwart Metformin has more evidence to its efficacy, while fellow diabetes drug Canagliflozin has been shown to increase the lifespan of male mice. Furthermore, a new and very expensive supplement has also been shown to also increase murine life and healthspan.

For me, there’s finally light at the end of the tunnel workwise, so hopefully I’ll soon be able to devote more time to longevity related advocacy, which I’ve had to neglect the last few months. I’m also mulling over whether or not to get the new supplement mentioned above for my parents, but at more than $100USD per month, it’s giving me pause for thought!

Stay safe!

Follow me on Twitter @ChrisPollyanna1 for the latest updates.
Please also join my longevity Facebook group.
Finally – any comments or feedback is greatly appreciated!
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NOTE: I’ve been having trouble linking to the science journal hacking site www.sci-hub.se , so am only including Full Text links to articles not behind a paywall. I still have been able to download most of them, so if there are any that you are after, I can send them upon request, or you can simply copy the paper’s URL into the site above to get +95% of papers hidden behind paywalls.
Round-Up:

Metformin has long been touted as an anti-ageing drug and it certainly is the most widely consumed among longevity researchers. Proof of its efficacy will have to wait for the now delayed TAME trial, however this study seems to show that Metformin slowed cognitive decline over 6 years.
*Metformin Use Is Associated With Slowed Cognitive Decline and Reduced Incident Dementia in Older Adults With Type 2 Diabetes: The Sydney Memory and Ageing Study

The Interventions Testing Program remains the gold standard for lifespan interventions, so when they produce a positive result it is worth paying attention. In this case it is a common diabetes drug Canagliflozin, a SGLT2 inhibitor, which extended median survival of male mice by 14%, and maximum by 9%.
Canagliflozin extends lifespan in genetically heterogeneous male but not female mice Full Text

Although not up to the rigorous standards of the ITP, Alpha-ketoglutarate was shown by a well respected group of researchers to modestly increase lifespan by 5 -10% in mice. However, there was a much greater improvement in healthspan, including the retention of hair colouring.
Alpha-Ketoglutarate Extends Healthspan in Aging Mice Full Text

I’ve talked about how important it is to prevent immune system decline, and how targeting the Thymus provides an avenue for that. Here, stem cells taken from umbilical cords have shown to do just that.
Umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells protect thymus structure and function in aged C57 mice by downregulating aging-related genes and upregulating autophagy- and anti-oxidative stress-related genes Full Text

Although this last item is only a press release, I’ve included it as it provides hope that noise induced hearing loss might be treatable.
Frequency Therapeutics Presents Results Demonstrating Sustained Improvement in Hearing Loss Patients Treated with FX-322

Covid-19 Longevity Related Papers:

Another month, another conference, this time the 7th Aging Research and Drug Discovery conference, whose videos have now been posted. There is quite a selection to choose from with over 40 videos available!

ARDD 2020 Videos
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Further sources of information:
Fight Aging! (quite opinionated about the damage theory of ageing)
Life Extension Advocacy Foundation (LEAF) (best source of longevity information on the web)
Longecity (good forums where the self-experimenters reside!)
Aging Matters (good blog from the programmed ageing side)
Research Institutes:
SENS Research Foundation (I have a recurring monthly donation)
Buck Institute
Private initiatives:
Age-Reversal Network (good information & forums for those interested in self-experimentation – this is where I found how to get non-prescription Rapamycin)
Better Humans
Gerontology Research Group
Lifespan.io (Tied together with LEAF, I have a recurring monthly donation)

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September 2020 Supplemental Information

***Disclaimer 1 – As should be self-evident to anyone receiving these emails, I am NOT a doctor or indeed a scientist. All the information pertained within is for information purposes only; use at your own risk. Please consult with a healthcare practitioner if needing medical advice.***
**Disclaimer 2 – In no way should supplements be a replacement for an unhealthy diet or lifestyle. A varied, plant dominant dietary pattern is the cornerstone for health. Try to eat the rainbow – the greater the variety, the greater the benefit. Even though I might take a supplement derived from a plant source, I still eat the plant in question. Also, make sure you move as much as possible – that is what we evolved to do.**
*Also bear in mind that most of the studies mentioned below are in rodents, not humans. Rodents, needless to say, do not always react the same way to drugs as humans do – witness the countless times cancer or another disease has been cured in rodents only to subsequently fail human trials. I have *bolded any human trials.*
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Lifestyle

Fasting/Dietary Restriction – certainly the cheapest & also one of the most effective anti-ageing interventions currently available. It comes in many flavours, but I fast for at least 12 hours every day.
*Effects of Time-Restricted Eating on Weight Loss and Other Metabolic Parameters in Women and Men With Overweight and Obesity
*Time-restricted feeding improves health without altering the body's core clock Full Text
*Effects of caloric restriction on human physiological, psychological, and behavioral outcomes: highlights from CALERIE phase 2

Diet – let food be thy medicine…
*Pesco-Mediterranean diet, intermittent fasting may lower heart disease risk Full Text
*Mediterranean diet and endothelial function in patients with coronary heart disease: An analysis of the CORDIOPREV randomized controlled trial Full Text
*Dietary Patterns, Carbohydrates, and Age-Related Eye Diseases Full Text

Exercise – if you could bottle the benefits of exercise, it would be the biggest blockbuster drug of all time.
*Exercise Training and Vitamin C Supplementation Affects Ferritin mRNA in Leukocytes without Affecting Prooxidative/Antioxidative Balance in Elderly Women Full Text
*Resistance Exercise, Electrical Muscle Stimulation, and Whole-Body Vibration in Older Adults: Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials Full Text
*The effect of 12-week resistance exercise training on serum levels of cellular aging process parameters in elderly men

Non-prescription Supplements (in alphabetical order)
*Due to concerns about engendering homeostasis, I’ve begun varying my intake of supplements so that I’m not taking all of them every day. Haven’t worked out a rota so far.

Astaxanthin – which is behind the pink colour of salmon & shrimp. Considered the most powerful carotenoid, it has anti-oxidative, anti-inflammatory, anti-cancer, neuro-protective and skin-protective qualities. I take 4 or 8 mg intermittently.
Effect of Astaxanthin on the Expression and Activity of Aquaporin-3 in Skin in an In-Vitro Study Full Text
Astaxanthin Suppresses PM2.5-Induced Neuroinflammation by Regulating Akt Phosphorylation in BV-2 Microglial Cells Full Text
Absorbability of Astaxanthin Was Much Lower in Obese Mice Than in Normal Mice