Molecular biologist Bill Andrews claims to be close to creating a pill that can slow down basic aging processes by restoring telomeres. According to him, the development could reach consumers in one to three years if the necessary funding is secured immediately. Otherwise, the deadline remains undetermined, and he himself speaks of the possibility of the product appearing within the decade.
Andrews is 74 years old and has linked his professional path with the idea of influencing aging for more than six decades. He says that when he was 10 years old, he received advice from his father to become a doctor and find a way to “cure aging“. Today, he is the founder and CEO of the biotech company Sierra Sciences in Reno, Nevada.
Telomeres as “protective caps“
Telomeres are located at the ends of chromosomes and protect genetic material during cell division. With each division, they usually shorten until the cell loses its ability to reproduce and enters a state of senescence.
The enzyme telomerase can rebuild telomeres. It was the discoveries about telomeres and telomerase that brought the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 2009 to Elizabeth Blackburn, Carol Greider, and Jack Shostak. The Nobel committee emphasizes that the mechanism is important for both aging and cancer, but the links between them are complex.
According to the publication of Popular Mechanics, Andrews turned to telomerase in 1993 after hearing a scientific presentation on the shortening of telomeres. He later claimed to have led a team at Geron Corporation that participated in the discovery of the human enzyme.
Molecule with 16 percent activity
Andrews' main goal is to find a molecule that activates the telomerase gene in normal human cells. Telomerase is normally maintained in reproductive and stem cells, but its activity is also characteristic of many cancer cells. This is one reason why the approach carries serious risks.
Andrews says that he now has the most powerful molecule his team has discovered. It reaches about 16 percent of the activity he says is needed to approach levels in reproductive cells. To continue research and scale up development, his company needs about $2 million a month.
His plan is to take the drug once every ten years. Andrews claims that a 45-year-old could be returned to a biological age of about 35, and with a subsequent dose, closer to 25. Biological age is not the same as chronological age and is associated with indicators of the condition of cells and the body.
Scientific limitations remain
The idea that longer telomeres automatically mean longer life has not been confirmed as a universal law. Observations in different species show that telomeres do not change in the same way with age. A study published in JAMA Oncology in 2017 analyzed genetic data on the link between telomere length and the risk of cancer and other diseases, but the results do not make telomerase a ready-made treatment.
The Nobel materials indicate that telomerase activity is increased in 80-90 percent of the cancers studied. This means that artificially lengthening telomeres must be controlled so that it does not promote uncontrolled division of damaged cells.
Andrews admits that the development still has to reach the necessary activity, be converted into a drug form and undergo safety and efficacy tests. "I just want the world to be happy and healthy," he says. For now, the promise of an anti-aging pill remains a claim by its creator, not an established medical fact.
Sources: Popular Mechanics