An informed perspective on the quest for immortality

A new research perspective published in Oncoscience by Mikhail Blagosklonny, M.D., Ph.D., looks at the possibility of immediate life extension using rapamycin.

"Here I discuss how combining rapamycin with other modalities may let us live long enough to benefit from future discoveries in cellular reprogramming and what needs to be done at Altos Labs to make this happen," the perspective states.  

Altos Labs—a new anti-aging biotechnology company funded by multiple billionaire investors, including Jeff Bezos and Yuri Milner—has reported a focus on reprogramming cells in order to reverse the trajectory of diseases, and thus, reverse aging. 

In his research perspective, Dr. Blagosklonny writes that potential life-extension with rapamycin may allow us to win time while awaiting future discoveries that will reverse aging. 

"Rapamycin treatment is rapidly becoming a mainstream anti-aging intervention," he writes.  

However, Dr. Blagosklonny also writes that rapamycin alone is unlikely to extend lifespan sufficiently to benefit from Altos Labs' future discoveries in our lifetime. 

"If Altos Labs would allocate a small percentage of its funding to develop rapamycin based drug combinations, then additional decades of life extension may be available 3–5 years from now," he writes. "The number of potential combinations with rapamycin is enormous."