BioAge Labs, a clinical-stage biotech developing therapeutics that target the molecular causes of aging to extend healthy human lifespan, today announced positive Phase 1b clinical data for BGE-105, a highly selective, potent, orally available small-molecule agonist of the apelin receptor APJ.

BGE-105 treatment resulted in statistically significant prevention of muscle atrophy relative to placebo in healthy volunteers aged 65 or older after 10 days of strict bed rest.

Longevity. Technology: Muscle atrophy – loss of muscle mass and strength – is a universal feature of human aging that increases the risk of multiple morbidities, shortens lifespan and diminishes quality of life. Hospitalisation and periods of forced inactivity greatly accelerate this loss in older people.

Spermidine is a popular longevity supplement – and with good reason, as it has antiaging properties and can suppress inflammation and oxidation. Studies have shown the interestingly-named polyamine can increase lifespan in animal models, and research indicates that its decline with aging is linked to the onset of age-related diseases.

Longevity. Technology: All this background is useful if you are wondering if supplements are right for you and if so, which ones to take. However, having a professional perspective is always useful, and founder of Impact Health Dr Halland Chen MD is a Double Board-Certified doctor who is a Partnered Practitioner of spermidineLIFE. We caught up with Dr Chen to find out what it is like practising at the cutting edge of longevity medicine, and what are some of the most promising interventions he recommends to his patients.

I did a lot of things in the sports realm and I became very involved in regenerative medicine – which naturally leads to longevity. A large part of what I wanted to focus on was not just treating a symptom, but getting to the root cause. Longevity is more than antiaging and wellness – it’s about helping people heal. Nowadays, there is more we can do – it’s very much functional medicine; functional longevity, wellness… we’re focused on that.

Growing miniature organ-like tissues in the lab is already within our reach. Now, researchers from Japan have developed a new approach that enables intestinal mini-organs to be grown more easily and efficiently in the lab. This holds immense promise for regenerative medicine.

In a study published in November in Cell Reports Methods, researchers from Tokyo Medical and Dental University (TMDU) reveal that applying a few specialized lab techniques yields intestine-like tissues of predictable size and composition.

Organoids are organ-like balls of cells that are grown in the lab from spheroids (even smaller balls) of human cells and mimic the properties of the organ from which the “seed” cell was taken. Organoids are used for studying organ function in a lab setting and are also promising tools in the field of regenerative medicine.