Anti-Aging Medications and Their Potential Role in Fighting Infections

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• Metformin and Rapamycin Antiviral Effects
• COVID-19 Pandemic Data Analysis
• Senolytic Drugs Antiviral Properties
• Rapamycin Pneumococcal Pneumonia Study
• Future Pandemic Preparedness Strategies
• Clinical Trials for Aging Medications
• Full Transcript

Metformin and Rapamycin Antiviral Effects

Anti-aging medications like Metformin and rapamycin may possess significant antiviral properties. Dr. Steven Austad, MD, PhD, discusses emerging evidence that these drugs can enhance the body's antiviral response. This potential dual function makes them particularly interesting for medical research. The mechanisms behind these effects are still under investigation but could revolutionize infection treatment.

COVID-19 Pandemic Data Analysis

The global COVID-19 pandemic provided unexpected data about these medications. Dr. Steven Austad, MD, PhD, notes that people with diabetes taking Metformin showed lower mortality rates from COVID-19. Similar patterns were observed with rapamycin use during the pandemic. Dr. Anton Titov, MD, and Dr. Austad emphasize that these emergency studies require careful interpretation. They must be confirmed through more rigorous research methods.

Senolytic Drugs Antiviral Properties

Senolytic drugs represent another class of anti-aging compounds with potential antiviral benefits. Dr. Steven Austad, MD, PhD, mentions studies showing senolytics have demonstrated antiviral effects in both mice and humans. These drugs work by clearing aged, dysfunctional cells that contribute to inflammation. This cellular cleanup may enhance the immune system's ability to fight viral infections effectively.

Rapamycin Pneumococcal Pneumonia Study

Dr. Steven Austad, MD, PhD, conducted important research on rapamycin's effects against bacterial infections. His study examined rapamycin's impact on pneumococcal pneumonia, the most common infectious disease killing older people before COVID-19. The research showed a protective effect against this serious bacterial infection, at least in mouse models. This suggests rapamycin might boost immunity against multiple pathogen types.

Future Pandemic Preparedness Strategies

Dr. Steven Austad, MD, PhD, emphasizes the importance of preparing for future pandemics. He notes that another pandemic is inevitable, whether viral or bacterial in nature. The research on anti-aging medications could provide crucial preventive strategies and treatments. Dr. Anton Titov, MD, discusses these possibilities with Dr. Austad, highlighting their potential significance for global health security.

Clinical Trials for Aging Medications

Both Dr. Steven Austad, MD, PhD, and Dr. Anton Titov, MD, stress the need for proper clinical trials. The emergency pandemic studies provide intriguing clues but require confirmation through controlled research. Dr. Austad advocates for well-designed trials conducted without emergency pressures. These studies could definitively establish whether anti-aging drugs truly offer protection against infections. Confirming these effects would represent a major medical advancement.

Full Transcript

Dr. Anton Titov, MD: We continue to live through a global COVID-19 pandemic. There has been some data that Metformin can enhance anti-viral response. People with diabetes who took Metformin had lower mortality from COVID-19. Same was perhaps true for rapamycin.

What is responsible for antiviral effects of Metformin and rapamycin? Is it a true antiviral effect?

Dr. Steven Austad, MD: We have to take all these studies carefully. They were done under emergency circumstances. We have to take them with a grain of salt until they're confirmed and extended.

I should also say there's a study of some of these senolytics drugs, at least in mice. And in humans, senolytics also seem to have an antiviral effect.

So what I would say is this. Let's hope that the pandemic appears to be waning. And we'll keep our fingers crossed that that will continue.

Now is the time to do clinical trials of these drugs in a more leisurely long-term vision and figure out if this is true. If it's true, it's incredibly important.

I did a study with a colleague where we looked at the effect of rapamycin on pneumococcal pneumonia. It is the most common infectious disease that kills older people before COVID-19. And it also had a protective effect, at least in mice.

So again, it could be by the time the next pandemic comes around, because it will come around. If it's a viral pandemic, we may have worked out some very good treatments and preventive strategies by then. That's at least what I'm hoping.