Gene therapy to reverse age by 20 years: World's first trial

The world's first breakthrough gene therapy clinical trial aims to reverse 20 years of aging in humans.

USA: Using gene therapy to express active telomerase (hTERT) in humans has the potential to treat many of the age-related diseases, including aging itself. Now, Libella Gene Therapeutics, has set up a pay-to-play clinical trial in Colombia (South America) that aims to use the gene therapy to reverse aging by 20 years. If successful, the therapy will become the world's only treatment to treat and cure aging.

The trial, approved by Libella's institutional review board (IRB), will be a pay-to-play model wherein volunteers have to pay $1m for enrollment in their country. Participants will then travel to Colombia to sign their consent. Gene therapy will be administered to participants under a controlled hospital setting.

Aging has been viewed as a natural aging process. But now, scientists believe aging to be a disease. Further research in this field has led to the belief that aging in humans is primarily caused by the shortening of telomeres -- caps at the end of each DNA strand that protects the end of the chromosome. Every time a cell divides telomeres shorten and the cells become less efficient at dividing again resulting in aging. This has been confirmed by a significant number of scientific peer-reviewed studies. Some of these studies have shown actual age reversal in every way imaginable simply by lengthening telomeres.

Bill Andrews, Libella's Chief Scientific Officer, has developed a gene therapy that aims to lengthen telomeres. Dr. Andrew's gene therapy delivery system has been demonstrated as safe with minimal adverse reactions in about 200 clinical trials. Dr. Andrews led the research at Geron Corporation over 20 years ago that initially discovered human telomerase and was part of the team that led the initial experiments related to telomerase induction and cancer.

Telomerase gene therapy in mice delays aging and increases longevity. Libella's clinical trial involves a new gene-therapy using a proprietary AAV Reverse (hTERT) Transcriptase enzyme and aims to lengthen telomeres. Libella believes that lengthening telomeres is the key to treating and possibly curing aging.

In the Phase I trial, the gene therapy will be evaluated for its safety and tolerability in approximately five participants. It is expected to be completed in 2021.

The primary endpoint is the incidence of adverse events, while secondary outcomes are hTERT expression and telomerase activity.

For more information visit: Libella Gene Therapeutics