Human aging has reversed in the study of the “Holy Grail,” scientists say

Scientists claim to have successfully reversed the biological aging process in a group of seniors.

In a one-of-a-kind study, researchers from Tel Aviv University and Shamir Medical Center used a form of oxygen therapy to reverse two key indicators of biological aging: telomere length and the accumulation of senescent cells.

As the human body ages, it experiences shortening of telomeres – the protective caps found at the ends of chromosomes – and an increase in old and malfunctioning senescent cells.

A clinical study involving 35 adults over the age of 64 sought to understand whether a method called hyperbaric oxygen therapy could prevent these two hallmarks of the aging process from deteriorating.

The subjects were placed in a pressurized chamber and treated with pure oxygen for 90 minutes a day, five days a week for three months.

At the end of the trial, the scientists reported that the participants’ telomeres had increased in length by an average of 20%, while their senescent cells had been reduced by up to 37%.

This is the equivalent of how their bodies were at the cellular level 25 years ago, the researchers reported.

“Since telomere shortening is considered the ‘Holy Grail’ of the biology of aging, many pharmacological and environmental interventions have been extensively explored in hopes of enabling telomere elongation,” said Shai Efrati, professor at the Faculty of Medicine and Sagol School of Neuroscience at Tel Aviv University and co-author of the study.

“The significant improvement in telomere length shown during and after these unique HBOT protocols provides the scientific community with a new basis for understanding that aging can, in fact, be targeted and reversed at the basic cellular biological level.”

It is the latest in a series of radical anti-aging treatments, which seek to increase life expectancy and even make people look and feel younger.

The idea is that aging is a disease that can be treated just like any other.

In 2015, the head of a biotech company made headlines after becoming patient zero in a new gene therapy that he said could make permanent changes to his DNA in order to combat muscle loss and other age-related conditions.

BioViva CEO Liz Parrish has received criticism from scientists for her experimental drug test, but says she has increased the length of her telomeres over the next five years and recently said death is optional.

During the latest trial in Israel, participants underwent no lifestyle, diet or medication adjustments, which were previously found to have moderate effects on a person’s biological age.

It is understood that the effects were instead the result of the pressurized chamber which induced a state of hypoxia, or lack of oxygen, which determined cell regeneration.

“Until now, interventions such as lifestyle modifications and strenuous exercise have been shown to have an inhibitory effect on the shortening of the expected telomere length,” said Dr. Amir Hadanny, co-author of the study.

“However, what is remarkable to note in our study is that in just three months of therapy, we were able to achieve such significant telomere lengthening, at speeds well beyond current available interventions or lifestyle modifications.” .