14 DAY TRIAL // Enjoying a long and healthy life is the one thing pretty much everybody wishes for. If we have to turn to drugs to see this dream of ours come true, then so be it.
The good news is that, by the looks of it, it could be that drugs that can help slow the aging process and keep us healthy in our later years are already well within our reach.
Thus, a new paper in the journal Aging Cell details the use of two existing drugs to prolong the lifespan of laboratory mice and help them stay healthy in old age.
How the drugs affected the rodents
As explained by the Scripps Research Institute researchers who conducted these experiments and their colleagues, the two compounds that were put to the test as part of this research project go by the name dasatinib and quercetin.
The first is a cancer drug currently marketed as Sprycel, the scientists detail. Quercetin, on the other hand, is a natural supplement used to treat allergies and inflammation in the body.
When administered to mice, the drugs not only extended their lifespan but also helped the rodents stay healthy in old age. Specifically, the compounds worked wonders on their cardiovascular system.
What's more, they reduced the animals' vulnerability to osteoporosis. Even cooler, the beneficial effects of the treatment were still noticeable months after administration.
“In animal models, the compounds improved cardiovascular function and exercise endurance, reduced osteoporosis and frailty, and extended healthspan,” said specialist Laura Niedernhofer.
As encouraging as the outcome of these experiments was, the researchers warn that further studies are needed before giving the green light to using dasatinib and quercetin to slow aging in people.
This is because it is still unclear what side effects the drugs could have if administered over a long period of time. Simply put, it could be that the compounds cause more harm than good on the long run.
How the compounds slow aging
In the report detailing their work, the scientists explain that the drugs work by targeting cells that have stopped dividing and killing them. These cells are known to the scientific community as senescent cells.
Previous studies have shown what with old age comes an accumulation of senescent cells in the body. The more such cells accumulate in tissues, the faster the aging process plays out and the more prone to disease the body becomes.
In laboratory tests, both dasatinib and quercetin proved that they can do away with senescent cells without affecting healthy ones. It is believed that this explains the effect the drugs had on the lifespan and overall health condition of mice.