Spanning cutting-edge diagnostics, cellular reprogramming, AI-driven animal research tools, immune rejuvenation and NAD+ restoration.
Every year, a host of new startups enter the longevity arena, each seeking to address some aspect of the vast enigma surrounding aging and its associated diseases, and 2024 was no exception. From technologies enhancing aging research and diagnostics, to new biotech ventures targeting untapped biological pathways to promote healthspan, here are a selection of interviews with some of longevity’s newest players.
Generation Lab
Co-founded by renowned UC Berkeley professor Irina Conboy, Generation Lab emerged from stealth with a new biological age test in February. The company has developed an at-home cheek-swab test that measures “molecular disbalance” to determine an individual’s biological age and disease risk. Unlike other biological clocks, Generation Lab’s method uses precise measurement of molecular biological noise, which the company claims provide a more nuanced understanding of aging.
“Basically, there are molecular disbalances in your body – gene expression, enzymes and proteins, which precipitate tissue degeneration and loss of function that can be identified by specific changes in specific pathways related to aging,” Conboy told us. “We can measure those signals and see if you are on a trajectory of becoming unhealthy – or if you are stable or even improving.”
NeuroAge Therapeutics
In March, we interviewed NeuroAge Therapeutics, which is developing cellular reprogramming approaches to combat brain aging and neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer’s. Led by CEO Dr Christin Glorioso, the company is developing small molecule drugs that target “middle manager” proteins to reprogram the brain’s aging trajectory, potentially offering a more controllable and reversible treatment than gene therapies. Additionally, NeuroAge is working on validating new biomarkers of brain aging and later in the year launched a brain aging test for consumers, combining genetic, epigenetic, MRI and cognitive assessments in an attempt to predict dementia risk decades in advance.
“I think of the Yamanaka factors as the ‘big bosses’ of the cells – they control everything, they can turn your cells all the way back to a stem cell,” Glorioso told us. “But there are other factors that are less powerful – ‘middle managers’ that control the rate of these changes that happen within your neurons in your brain. And if you can restore levels or function of those proteins back to the way they were when you were 25, then you can reprogram the brain aging trajectory. And that’s what our drugs are aimed at doing.”
Olden Labs
On a mission to revolutionize animal research in the field of longevity studies, Olden Labs emerged from stealth mode in May. The company develops AI-powered smart cages that continuously monitor the health and behavior of lab mice to make animal studies more efficient, affordable and data-rich while improving animal welfare. By automating the process, Olden aims to create the world’s first automated animal research lab and address the high costs and poor reproducibility associated with traditional manual animal research methods.
“If studies are expensive and laborious, not many are done,” co-founder Dr Michael Florea told us. “As a result, the field doesn’t progress and doesn’t replicate. I realized there needed to be a company that solved this in an accessible way, to make animal studies for longevity better and help the field progress.”
ImmuneAge Bio
In July, ImmuneAge Bio emerged with $2 million in funding to advance its platform focused on rejuvenating hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) found in bone marrow, which are crucial for the healthy function of the immune system. The company’s vision includes a non-invasive outpatient procedure to extract, expand, rejuvenate and reinfuse a patient’s own HSCs, and it has also identified a small molecule that enhances immune function and appears to have broader effects on cellular processes like autophagy and mitochondrial biogenesis.
“We have already identified a small molecule – a pill that enhances immune function better than anything published previously,” ImmuneAge founder Sebastian Brunemeier told us. “Through our collaborators in Switzerland we’re seeing a significant immune response to pathogens and cancer, and it makes the immune system look younger in terms of the hallmarks of immune aging.”
MetaShape Pharma
Finally, Swiss biotech MetaShape Pharma launched in November, with a mission to develop therapies to combat age-related diseases by restoring NAD+ levels, crucial for cellular metabolism and repair. The company’s approach aims to inhibit purine nucleoside phosphorylase (PNP), an enzyme that limits NAD+ synthesis, thus boosting NAD+ levels in critical tissues like the brain and muscles. Early preclinical studies show MetaShape’s technology effectively reduces LDL cholesterol and blood glucose while restoring NAD+ levels, with plans for human trials targeting cholesterol reduction next year.
“We believe that, in addition to its LDL-lowering potential, our drug is also tapping into what is probably one of the best researched biological systems for generating energy,” MetaShape founder Dr Thomas Mehrling told us. “We’re aiming to get an approved drug that has a marked potential in preventing multiple diseases that are associated with aging.”
