Help us: Donate
Follow us on:
×

Menu

Back

A New Rapamycin Human Trial for Longevity

Dr. Brad Stanfield heads up a rapamycin trial against aging.

Brad Stanfield RapamycinBrad Stanfield Rapamycin

We are delighted to announce that we are working with Dr. Brad Stanfield to launch human trials of rapamycin to see if it can slow down aging in a meaningful way.

The trial will include low-dose rapamycin combined with exercise to see if there is synergy between the two. When we are young, exercise alone is enough to trigger a cellular waste disposal system called autophagy. However, as we age, and our metabolisms become dysfunctional, we struggle to trigger autophagy.

This is where Dr. Stanfield believes that rapamycin can help. Evidence from multiple studies has suggested that rapamycin in low periodic doses may help get our metabolism back on track and restore the benefits of exercise when we are older.

Positive results would demonstrate a meaningful impact on the quality of life and ability of older people to function. This would be firm ground upon which to potentially get rapamycin approved as a drug to combat frailty caused by aging.

Dr. Stanfield has created this video to explain the reasoning behind this trial and how it will work. If you would like to support this trial, you can find out how by visiting the video below and donating to the fundraiser on Youtube.

We had the opportunity to speak with Dr. Stanfield about the proposed trial.

We hypothesize that periods of time where the mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathway is activated via exercise, combined with alternate periods of time where mTOR is inhibited using Rapamycin, will result in greater muscle performance in older adults compared with just exercise alone.

Human skeletal muscle inevitably undergoes remarkable changes with aging, characterized by a decline in muscle mass and strength of about 1% per year from the age of around 40 years. A growing body of evidence suggests that muscular strength is inversely and independently associated with all-cause and cardiovascular mortality even after adjusting for cardiorespiratory fitness. Ultimately, muscle wasting contributes significantly to weakness, disability, increased hospitalization, immobility, and loss of independence.

mTOR complexes 1 and 2 (mTORC1 and mTORC2) both play vital roles in cellular regulation, and, therefore, dysregulation of this signalling pathway disrupts cell homeostasis and may lead to pathologies associated with aging. mTORC1 is a nutrient-sensing protein kinase that can activate protein synthesis, drive lipid and nucleotide synthesis, and represses catabolism and autophagy.

Given its capability of blocking mTORC1 signalling, Rapamycin could be used to restore the mTORC1 balance and thereby improve exercise performance in older adults. Overactivation of mTORC1 has been observed in aged human muscles, but this overactivation of mTORC1 in aged muscles does not induce protein synthesis. Instead, chronic mTORC1 activation in old muscle leads to muscle atrophy mainly due to the inability to induce autophagy, suggesting the importance of mTOR-induced regulation of autophagy in aged muscle. Therefore, intermittent dosing with Rapamycin may restore the mTORC1 balance, whereby there are periods of mTORC1 activation and therefore protein synthesis, but also periods of mTORC1 inhibition with Rapamycin leading to autophagy. Plausibly, this approach may lead to an improvement in muscle performance of older adults. Furthermore, with a low and intermittent dosing regime, we aim to inhibit primarily mTORC1, thereby reducing the potential of adverse events.

To investigate this idea, we propose an initial proof-of-concept study designed to assess the safety, tolerability, feasibility, and trial design of weekly rapamycin or placebo dosing over a three-month period, in combination with thrice-weekly group exercise programs. The target population is 60-70 year old adults with either no co-morbidities or a well controlled chronic condition, that do not already perform weekly, strenuous exercise, and the primary outcome is the 30-second (30-s) Chair Stand Test. This will enable an appropriate power calculation to be conducted to inform the number of participants required for a superiority clinical trial.

We would like to ask you a small favor. We are a non-profit foundation, and unlike some other organizations, we have no shareholders and no products to sell you. We are committed to responsible journalism, free from commercial or political influence, that allows you to make informed decisions about your future health.

All our news and educational content is free for everyone to read, but it does mean that we rely on the help of people like you. Every contribution, no matter if it’s big or small, supports independent journalism and sustains our future. You can support us by making a donation or in other ways at no cost to you.

Dietary Magnesium in Dementia Prevention

Researchers publishing in the European Journal of Nutrition looked into magnesium as a possible candidate for preventing dementia, focusing on...

Glycine and Cysteine Combo Rescues Cognitive Decline in Mice

Scientists publishing in Antioxidants have reported that increasing glutathione levels with GlyNAC, a supplement that combines glycine and cysteine, significantly...

Vitalik Buterin Exclusive Interview: Longevity, AI and More

Vitalik Buterin holding Zuzu, the puppy rescued by people of Zuzalu. Photo: Michelle Lai Don’t try finding Zuzalu on a...

Centenarians Have Slightly Different Gut Ecologies

Researchers publishing in Nature Microbiology have determined that the viruses populating the intestines of centenarians are slightly different from those...

CategoryNews

Related Community Members

About the author

Steve Hill

Steve serves on the LEAF Board of Directors and is the Editor in Chief, coordinating the daily news articles and social media content of the organization. He is an active journalist in the aging research and biotechnology field and has to date written over 600 articles on the topic, interviewed over 100 of the leading researchers in the field, hosted livestream events focused on aging, as well as attending various medical industry conferences. His work has been featured in H+ magazine, Psychology Today, Singularity Weblog, Standpoint Magazine, Swiss Monthly, Keep me Prime, and New Economy Magazine. Steve is one of three recipients of the 2020 H+ Innovator Award and shares this honour with Mirko Ranieri – Google AR and Dinorah Delfin – Immortalists Magazine. The H+ Innovator Award looks into our community and acknowledges ideas and projects that encourage social change, achieve scientific accomplishments, technological advances, philosophical and intellectual visions, author unique narratives, build fascinating artistic ventures, and develop products that bridge gaps and help us to achieve transhumanist goals. Steve has a background in project management and administration which has helped him to build a united team for effective fundraising and content creation, while his additional knowledge of biology and statistical data analysis allows him to carefully assess and coordinate the scientific groups involved in the project.
  1. best91950
    December 1, 2021

    Greetings: I AM 86 years old and am into my third year of weekly 6mg once every 7 days.of Sirolimus(rapamune)-generic Rapamycin. I feel great mentally and physically but there is no doubt that my arms and legs are sarcopenic. my recent echocardiogram is almost identical to the ne I had 4.5 years ago-Ist degree diastolic dysfunction. I have an expanding AORTIC ROOT that could have led to q ruptured thoracic aneurism but has reversed size of the AORTIC ROOT AND WILL NOT BRING ME DOWN- there is a study from Yale explaining why it reverses with rapamycin—new smooth muscle cells in the media of the ascending aorta and aortic root’–Japanese study explains why also.Am going to enroll in a Gym tomorrow and see if I can reverse the sarcopenia. Did a 6 mile hike up a 6% grade today and felt well. If I can help with your study let me know. GBEST MD

  2. Mitchell Terrill
    December 2, 2021

    My mother is 84, scoliotic, thin and weak. She suffers from MAC. Could Rapamycin help her get some muscle and some more quality of life.

    Thanks,

    Mitchell N Terrill, MD

  3. Ken
    December 8, 2021

    I am Australian and would love to participate. Happy to come to the US to get started but am 71.

    • bzimonick
      May 3, 2022

      Did you get to participate?

  4. markanthony
    June 6, 2022

    Hi Brad,
    How can I buy your book?
    Mark

Write a comment:

*

Your email address will not be published.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.