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JuveNews - Sample Issue
A summary of the
latest news on the biology of aging field for professionals in the
biomedical, pharmaceutical, research and investment communities.
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A Free Email News Periodical. To subscribe visit our
web site at - www.juvenews.com
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Blood pressure drugs "slow aging"
(New Scientist, October 2,
02) Common blood-pressure drugs
(ACE-inhibitors) that help prevent the
life-threatening complications of diabetes
may do so by slowing the accelerated aging
from which diabetics suffer. The discovery
could lead to drugs that delay some of the
symptoms of aging in everyone. An
Australian team, led by Mark Cooper of the
Baker Institute, has found that a common
blood-pressure drug called ramipril slows
aging in rats with diabetes. Those rats
also had far less damage to their kidneys.
"There was complete prevention," says team
member Josephine Forbes. The results will
appear in November's issue of the journal
Diabetes.
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Biomarker Pharmaceuticals Launched, 20% Increase in Mouse Lifespan Announced with Caloric Restriction Mimetic. At the recent conference on age-mitigating therapeutics in San Francisco (Oct. 16th) Stephen Spindler, UC Riverside biology professor and Cofounder/Chief Technical Officer for Biomarker Pharmaceuticals announced that they have a new caloric restriction mimetic compound that increases the life span of mice by approx. 20%. If this is proven accurate in further tests it represents the first significant age-mitigating compound that works on mammals - and may have applications in humans. Steve Spindler is a well known researcher in the field of caloric restriction and we look forward to reporting further on this development as details become available. The company Web site is at:
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Aging: Europe's Growing Problem
(The BBC, September 11, 02)
According to the United Nations, aging is
increasingly becoming one of the most
salient social, economic, and demographic
phenomena of our times. In Europe, as in
other continents of the world, the problem
will be acute. For more news on the
societal problems caused by an aging
population, please see this
Link.
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Glaxo SmithKline Enters Early Trials
With Calorie Restriction Mimetic
(ReasonOnline, Aug. 02)
A recent article on the state of the
age-mitigating therapeutics market reveals
that Glaxo SmithKline has entered early
trials with its first age-mitigation
therapeutic. The compound reportedly
affects the PPAR-Delta receptor, which
improves the body’s response to insulin
and glucose, mimicking the benefits of
calorie restriction. The drug was
developed by Barbara Hansen, a diabetes
researcher at the University of Maryland.
(See the following story for a link to the
full article, titled "Forever Young"). A
caloric restriction mimetic would address
two very large market segments; people
suffering from diabetes (which in many
medical aspects can be viewed as
"accelerated aging"), as well as healthy
individuals who would like to have an
increased healthspan and lifespan.
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"Reduced-Calorie Diet Adds Nearly Two Years
(16%) to Dogs' Life Span,"
(Eurekalert [American
Association for the Advancement of Science],
September 13, 2002) In a press
release marking the end of a 14-year study
of canine diet and health it was announced
that dogs fed a calorie-restricted diet live
a median 1.8 years (16 percent) longer than
dogs allowed to eat more, and are slower to
develop chronic diseases such as
osteoarthritis. The findings add to the
growing body of evidence that caloric
restriction in a wide range of species
significantly boosts longevity while also
significantly improving quality of life by
reducing incidence of some chronic
illnesses, most notably osteoarthritis. It
is also believed that diet can either
mitigate or exacerbate the expression of
genetic diseases. Partial results were
published in May in the Journal of the
America
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Ageless Muscles (and
athletes) may not be
far off
(The Philadelphia
Inquirer, Aug. 4)
Scientists at the
University of
Pennsylvania have
developed
genetically
engineered mice and
rats that have
strong, well-toned
muscles that do not
weaken with age or a
lack of exercise.
These rodents are as
much as 60 percent
stronger than
untreated ones. When
injured, the muscle
recovers quickly,
and their muscles
don't weaken with
age. While the
implications for
unethical use in
sporting events is a
concern, the market
for such therapy,
and the benefits
from this treatment
for the elderly
suffering from
Sarcopenia would be
extremely large.
Sarcopenia, the loss
of muscle mass due
to aging, is a risk
factor for injurious
falls in the
elderly.
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New research journal on aging is launched - "Aging Cell" publishes first issue Rapidly growing interest and publishing of research on the biology of aging has prompted the launch of another leading publication in the field. At the Buck Institution September 26th symposium, Blackwell Publishing introduced this new journal. With a strong focus on high-quality research in the biology of aging field, this publication has a chance to take a leading position in the industry.
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Antioxidant reduces brain damage in stroke model (National Jewish Medical Research Center, October 1, 2002) . New research shows that a synthetic antioxidant in development by Incara Pharmaceuticals, AEOL 10150, can reduce brain damage by more than 40 percent in an animal model of stroke when given seven and a half hours after the stroke begins. Researchers at National Jewish Medical and Research Center and Duke University Medical Center will report their findings in the October issue of the journal Free Radical Biology and Medicine.
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Juvensa commentary: Although the clinical potential for these new super oxide dismutase (SOD) mimetics looks very good, unless Incara can get a partner or a cash infusion quickly their compounds may never come to market. Incara Pharamaceuticals has been struggling financially for the past year and was predicted to run out of money in October (this month). For more information on Incara see www.incara.com.
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Italian and Japanese leaders meet to discuss aging society problem (Italy On Line, Aug. , 2002) A special announcement from the Italian Prime Minister's office. The problem of an aging population is one that is shared by the Italian and the Japanese Governments. Welfare Minister, Roberto Maroni, met with his Japanese colleague, Chikara Sakaguchi, to find strategies to be shared to arrest the present demographic trend in both countries. They decided to create a task force to study possible solutions to the problem.
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English Company Focusing on
Growing new Teeth from Stem
Cells (BBC
News, August)
Dentures could one day be
replaced by teeth grown in the
laboratory. A British scientist
has adapted the latest
techniques in genetic
engineering to grow immature
mouse teeth from stem cells. He
has already set up a firm,
Odontis, to exploit the
breakthrough.
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" Stress
hormone offers
target for
memory-boost drugs,"
(Reuters Health,
September 17, 2002).
Levels of the stress
hormone cortisol
appear to affect
memory in the
elderly, according
to the results of a
new study.
Researchers believe
the findings could
point the way to
therapies that could
help slow or restore
failing memory. In a
study of elderly
individuals, Dr.
Sonia J. Lupien of
McGill University's
Douglas Hospital
Research Center in
Verdun, Quebec,
Canada, and
colleagues found
that they could
induce temporary
changes in memory by
manipulating levels
of the
stress-related
hormone cortisol.
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The
genetics
of
exceptional
human
longevity
( J Mol
Neurosci,
Aug-Oct
2002 Aug
19,
Perls T,
Kunkel
LM, Puca
AA)
Demographic
selection
is the
drop out
within a
cohort,
of
genotypes
linked
to
age-related
lethal
diseases
and
premature
mortality
as the
cohort
achieves
older
and
older
age. The
result
of
demographic
selection
is a
very old
cohort
that
lacks
these
genotypes
relative
to
younger
age
groups.
Recent
pedigree
and
molecular
genetic
studies
indicate
that
scientists
can use
this
selection
to their
advantage
in
discerning
genotypes
that
play
important
roles in
delaying
or
escaping
diseases
such as
Alzheimer's
disease,
and in
slowing
the
aging
process.
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Animal models of oxidative
stress, aging, and therapeutic
antioxidant interventions.
(Int J Biochem
Cell Biol , Nov, 2002, Melov S.
) This review discusses
the role of oxidative stress in
the context of animal models,
focusing in particular on animal
models of aging, as well as the
development of a new class of
therapeutic small molecular
weight antioxidants that have
proven effective in extending
the lifespan of a simple
invertebrate nematode.
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Effects of N-acetylcysteine on
macrophage and lymphocyte
functions in a mouse model of
premature ageing.
(Pharmacol
Biochem Behav , Nov, 2002,
Puerto M, Guayerbas N, Vi;ctor
V, De la Fuente M. ) A
study of the effects of the
thiolic antioxidant N-acetylcysteine
(NAC) on different functions of
peritoneal macrophages and
lymphocytes from slow and fast
adult Swiss mice. The results
showed an improvement of all the
functions studied, namely
adherence to substrate, directed
migration or chemotaxis,
phagocytosis, and reactive
oxygen species (ROS) production,
after in vivo and in vitro
treatment with NAC. The effect
of this antioxidant was stronger
in the cells from the slow than
in those from the fast mice.A
small molecular weight catalytic
metalloporphyrin antioxidant
with superoxide dismutase (SOD)
mimetic properties protects
lungs from radiation-induced
injury. (Free
Radic Biol Med , Sept, 2002,
Vujaskovic Z, Batinic-Haberle I,
Rabbani Z et al) There
was a significant reduction in
the plasma level of the
profibrogenic cytokine
transforming growth factor-beta
(TGF-beta) in the group of rats
receiving RT + AEOL 10113. In
conclusion, the novel SOD
mimetic, AEOL 10113,
demonstrates a significant
protective effect from
radiation-induced lung injury.
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Advanced glycation end products
and nutrition
(Physiol R , 2002,
Krajcovicova-Kudlackova M,
Sebekova K et al)
Fructation induced AGE
fluorescence is greater as
compared with that induced by
glucose. It is due to higher
participation of a more reactive
acyclic form of fructose. Intake
of vegetables and fruit with
predominance of fructose is
significantly higher in
vegetarians. Comparison of
nutrition and plasma AGEs in
vegetarian and omnivorous groups
shows that the higher intake of
fructose in alternative
nutrition of healthy subjects
may cause an increase of AGE
levels.
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From the Hayflick mosaic to the
mosaics of ageing. Role of
stress-induced premature
senescence in human ageing.
(Int J Biochem
Cell Biol , 2002, Toussaint O,
Remacle J, Dierick J, et al.)
The Hayflick limit-senescence of
proliferative cell types-is a
fundamental feature of
proliferative cells in vitro.
All cell types undergoing
stress-induced premature
senescence-like phenotype (SIPS)
in vivo, most notably the ones
in stressful conditions, are
likely to participate in the
tissular changes observed along
ageing. For instance, human
diploid fibroblasts (HDFs)
exposed in vivo and in vitro to
pro-inflammatory cytokines
display biomarkers of senescence
and might participate in the
degradation of the extracellular
matrix observed in ageing.
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How the brain forgets
(BBC Health
News, Aug. 31)
Scientists have found a
molecule that may be to blame
for loss of memory as we get
older. It raises the tempting
prospect of new therapies to
restore memory.
- "U.S.
life expectancy hits new high,
but Obesity Epidemic Threatens
Health Gains"
(Associated
Press and Reuters via MSNBC,
September 13, 2002)
Americans are living longer
than ever before, but they are
overweight and physically lazy
and spend far more on health
care than any other country in
the world, the government said
on Thursday in its annual
review of the nation’s health.
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