A wonder drug that not only makes you live longer but also healthier could be on the horizon. Scientists have discovered that a cancer drug taken from mid-life could extend your healthy life by 10 per cent.
Researchers at Waipapa Taumata Rau - University of Auckland, New Zealand, gave the drug alpelisib to mice. Starting at middle age, about a year old, they found that it increased their lifespan on average by 10 per cent to three years.
They also showed some signs of being healthier in old age such as improved coordination and strength. Research fellow Dr Chris Hedges said: “Ageing is not only about lifespan but also about quality of life."
"Therefore, we were pleased to see this drug treatment not only increased longevity of the mice but they also showed many signs of healthier ageing. We are working now to understand how this happens.”
However, the researchers are cautious about application to humans since the mice treated with the drug also had lower bone mass. The study, published in the journal Nature Aging, used mice who were fed a control diet or the same diet with alpelisib.
Principle investigator Associate Professor Troy Merry says: “We are not suggesting that anyone should go out and take this drug long-term to extend lifespan, as there are some side effects. However, this work identifies mechanisms crucial to ageing that will be of use in our long-term efforts to increase lifespan and health-span.
"It also suggests a number of possible ways in which shorter term treatments with this drug could be used to treat certain metabolic health conditions and we are following this up now.”
Professor Peter Shepherd says that the drug works by targetting an enzyme called PI 3-kinase. He said: “We have been working on developing drugs to target PI 3-kinase for more than 20 years as evidence indicated they would be useful to treat cancers as many cancers have an excess activation of this pathway.
“Therefore, it’s great to see that these drugs might have uses in other areas and reveal novel mechanisms contributing to age-related diseases. It also shows the value of long-term investment in research is areas such as this.”
