July 7, 2009

expert reaction to Nature paper on drug that extends lifespan in mice

US scientists have found that rapamycin, a drug discovered in the soil of a South Pacific island in the 1970s, may have the effect of extending lifespan when given to mice. However, experts warned against using it for this purpose, as it can also suppress the immune system.

Dr Lynne Cox, Researcher in Ageing, Department of Biochemistry, University of Oxford, said:

“This is a very exciting study where a single drug with a known cellular effect increases the life expectancy and lifespan of mice. It is especially interesting that the drug was effective even when given to older mice – equivalent to 60 year old humans – as it would be much better to treat ageing in older people rather than using drugs long term through life.

“In no way should anyone consider using this particular drug to try to extend their own lifespan as rapamycin suppresses immunity. While the lab mice were protected from infection, that’s simply impossible in the human population.

“What the study does is to highlight an important molecular pathway that new, more specific drugs might be designed to work on. Whether it’s a sensible thing to try to increase lifespan this way is another matter: perhaps increasing health span rather than overall lifespan might be a better goal.”