4 ms·

Over 20 years ago, I watched a video by Aubrey De Grey that really impressed me. In the video, he presented a short list of "problems" associated with aging and

Over 20 years ago, I watched a video by Aubrey De Grey that really impressed me. In the video, he presented a short list of "problems" associated with aging and described aging as a disease. I haven't received any updates on this topic in a long time. Is it still science fiction to think about living to be over 120 years old?

jonahbenton 4y ago
Not science fiction. 150 might be possible for some people alive now. Andrew Huberman's interview with researcher David Sinclair mid-2022 well worth a listen for high level but technical coverage of state of play. Yes, these people are avid promoters of their work, but they are doing the work.
- mromanuk 4y ago
  Thanks! I don't mind the marketing, in fact, if there is good science behind it I totally support it.
- nradov 4y ago
  There's no scientific reason to expect that anyone alive today will live to 150. It's purely based on conjecture and hope. If that was likely to happen then we would be seeing some incremental progress towards the goal already. But still we haven't seen anyone verified to live past 122. And she died in 1997. Maximum lifespan is unimportant anyway. What actually matters is healthspan. If anything we're going backwards on that metric.
  - epicureanideal 4y ago
    Change can happen gradually then suddenly. For example, massive human death due to disease, and then in the space of one human lifetime in the rich world the death rate from disease dropped incredibly fast.
    - nradov 4y ago
      In the space of one human lifetime maybe someone will invent a warp drive. I can't prove it won't happen. But since we're not making any concrete progress towards that goal it seems highly unlikely. Same thing with extending human lifespan to 150. Let's see some actual scientific evidence. Otherwise it's just an expression of faith.
      - epicureanideal 4y ago
        There is progress toward the goal. For example determining molecular and tissue markers of aging, research in mice, all the work funded by SENS Foundation and soon LEV Foundation, findings that for example giving blood from young mice to old mice restores some aspects of youthfulness, and so on.
        nradov 4y ago
        That's interesting basic research but so far no one has established a clear causal connection to lifespan. It remains just conjecture.
  - mromanuk 4y ago
    Healthspan is super important, will be really cool to have a youngish person living to 130/140/150, but yes a healthy centenarian is really cool, too.
- voyager1 4y ago
  What do you think about his promotion of NMN? I was very excited at first, but looking at his past, it all seems very shady. In 2004, Sinclair, along with serial entrepreneur Andrew Perlman, Christoph Westphal, Richard Aldrich, Richard Pops, and Paul Schimmel, founded Sirtris Pharmaceuticals. Sirtris was focused on developing Sinclair's research into activators of sirtuins, work that began in the Guarente lab. The company was specifically focused on resveratrol formulations and derivatives as activators of the SIRT1 enzyme; Sinclair became known for making statements about resveratrol like: "(It's) as close to a miraculous molecule as you can find. ... One hundred years from now, people may be taking these molecules on a daily basis to prevent heart disease, stroke, and cancer." Most of the anti-aging field was more cautious, especially with regard to what else resveratrol might do in the body and its lack of bioavailability. The company's initial product was called SRT501, and was a formulation of resveratrol. Five years later, GSK shuttered the Sirtris program without successful drug development. Sinclair broadly discusses his longevity practices on social media and includes them in his book. They include daily doses of NMN and resveratrol, which Sinclair says are activators of SIRT1. Studies published in 2009 and early 2010 by scientists from Amgen and Pfizer cast doubt on whether SIRT1 was directly activated by resveratrol and showed that the apparent activity was actually due to a fluorescent reagent used in the experiments. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_A._Sinclair https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_A._Sinclair https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sirtris_Pharmaceuticals https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sirtris_Pharmaceuticals
  - nradov 4y ago
    We just don't know about NMN. It appears to be generally safe, but no study has ever shown it to extend lifespan in primates. More research is needed. https://peterattiamd.com/ama35/ https://peterattiamd.com/ama35/
    - voisin 4y ago
      I thought it drastically increased the rate of growth lf certain cancers?
- idonotknowwhy 4y ago
  It's a shame his company is gate keeping NMN now that he's created demand for it
- jjtheblunt 4y ago
  > for some people alive now what distinguishes those people?
Tade0 4y ago
Imagine job listings with 50 years minimum experience. Lending and investing also become interesting at these timespans.
- sentientslug 4y ago
  And insurance
xwdv 4y ago
Not science fiction, but the first people to start topping out at those ages consistently will likely have the right combination of wealth, lifestyle and good genetics.

jonahbenton 4y ago

Not science fiction. 150 might be possible for some people alive now. Andrew Huberman's interview with researcher David Sinclair mid-2022 well worth a listen for high level but technical coverage of state of play. Yes, these people are avid promoters of their work, but they are doing the work.

mromanuk 4y ago
Thanks! I don't mind the marketing, in fact, if there is good science behind it I totally support it.
nradov 4y ago
There's no scientific reason to expect that anyone alive today will live to 150. It's purely based on conjecture and hope. If that was likely to happen then we would be seeing some incremental progress towards the goal already. But still we haven't seen anyone verified to live past 122. And she died in 1997. Maximum lifespan is unimportant anyway. What actually matters is healthspan. If anything we're going backwards on that metric.
- epicureanideal 4y ago
  Change can happen gradually then suddenly. For example, massive human death due to disease, and then in the space of one human lifetime in the rich world the death rate from disease dropped incredibly fast.
  - nradov 4y ago
    In the space of one human lifetime maybe someone will invent a warp drive. I can't prove it won't happen. But since we're not making any concrete progress towards that goal it seems highly unlikely. Same thing with extending human lifespan to 150. Let's see some actual scientific evidence. Otherwise it's just an expression of faith.
    - epicureanideal 4y ago
      There is progress toward the goal. For example determining molecular and tissue markers of aging, research in mice, all the work funded by SENS Foundation and soon LEV Foundation, findings that for example giving blood from young mice to old mice restores some aspects of youthfulness, and so on.
      - nradov 4y ago
        That's interesting basic research but so far no one has established a clear causal connection to lifespan. It remains just conjecture.
- mromanuk 4y ago
  Healthspan is super important, will be really cool to have a youngish person living to 130/140/150, but yes a healthy centenarian is really cool, too.
voyager1 4y ago
What do you think about his promotion of NMN? I was very excited at first, but looking at his past, it all seems very shady. In 2004, Sinclair, along with serial entrepreneur Andrew Perlman, Christoph Westphal, Richard Aldrich, Richard Pops, and Paul Schimmel, founded Sirtris Pharmaceuticals. Sirtris was focused on developing Sinclair's research into activators of sirtuins, work that began in the Guarente lab. The company was specifically focused on resveratrol formulations and derivatives as activators of the SIRT1 enzyme; Sinclair became known for making statements about resveratrol like: "(It's) as close to a miraculous molecule as you can find. ... One hundred years from now, people may be taking these molecules on a daily basis to prevent heart disease, stroke, and cancer." Most of the anti-aging field was more cautious, especially with regard to what else resveratrol might do in the body and its lack of bioavailability. The company's initial product was called SRT501, and was a formulation of resveratrol. Five years later, GSK shuttered the Sirtris program without successful drug development. Sinclair broadly discusses his longevity practices on social media and includes them in his book. They include daily doses of NMN and resveratrol, which Sinclair says are activators of SIRT1. Studies published in 2009 and early 2010 by scientists from Amgen and Pfizer cast doubt on whether SIRT1 was directly activated by resveratrol and showed that the apparent activity was actually due to a fluorescent reagent used in the experiments. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_A._Sinclair https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_A._Sinclair https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sirtris_Pharmaceuticals https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sirtris_Pharmaceuticals
- nradov 4y ago
  We just don't know about NMN. It appears to be generally safe, but no study has ever shown it to extend lifespan in primates. More research is needed. https://peterattiamd.com/ama35/ https://peterattiamd.com/ama35/
  - voisin 4y ago
    I thought it drastically increased the rate of growth lf certain cancers?
idonotknowwhy 4y ago
It's a shame his company is gate keeping NMN now that he's created demand for it
jjtheblunt 4y ago
> for some people alive now what distinguishes those people?

Tade0 4y ago

Imagine job listings with 50 years minimum experience. Lending and investing also become interesting at these timespans.

sentientslug 4y ago
And insurance

xwdv 4y ago

Not science fiction, but the first people to start topping out at those ages consistently will likely have the right combination of wealth, lifestyle and good genetics.