So far, nothing is going to stop you from aging, but there's a new class of drugs that may keep you young for a very long time.
If you haven't heard of Senolytics before, it's because it refers to a new classification of drugs, the purpose of which is to help you achieve vitality even when you're already old. Thereby, it keeps the signs and symptoms at bay.
These new drugs have been identified by Scripps Research Institute, and details now shared online. It's expected to appear in the recent issue of Aging Cell.
According to the article published in Scripps website on March 9, these drugs may be considered as a big leap not only in developing medications and treatments but also in providing the aging population with drugs that are effective and safe to take. When combined, these drugs are expected to treat, delay, or prevent diseases. They may also have the ability to reverse disorders and disabilities.
How do they exactly work? They target the senescent cells. The body is composed of various types of cells, and these include senescent ones or those that have stopped dividing. Normally, the body's cells divide and die to give way to new cells. This is how you renew yourself continuously.
However, as a person grows older, the body accumulates more of these senescent cells. The researchers discovered that, by using animal models like mice, by killing these types of cells, they could arrest or delay the signs of aging.
They then wanted to translate the same effect on humans, but human cells are also prone to resist apoptosis (cell death) like cancer cells. So they had to remove the resistance first, and this is where the new class of drugs belongs.
For example, compounds in quercetin, an anti-inflammatory supplement, and dasatinib, a cancer drug, when combined, can kill these senescent cells without harming the other cells.
Using animal models, the combined drugs boosted heart function, improve endurance, and decrease frailty.