Nowadays, many people live longer than their parents and grandparents, but these extra years are often accompanied by many chronic diseases. For this reason, scientists are striving to make these final decades of life a true “golden time,” rather than just an extra period, by studying ways to delay the biological decline that typically intensifies after age 65.
One method that has attracted significant attention relies on chemical interventions rather than strict diets.
Reducing calories and its benefits
Reducing calorie intake without causing malnutrition extends the lives of mice, worms, and even rhesus monkeys, but sticking to this type of diet is difficult and can lead to dizziness, osteoporosis, and hair loss.
Therefore, researchers are working to develop drugs that provide the same benefits without the need to change the usual daily diet.
The importance of aging research
Aging pushes cells toward dysfunction, which contributes to the most common causes of death such as heart disease, cancer, and dementia. Therefore, delaying this essential process may reduce the burden of several diseases at once, rather than focusing on treating each disease individually.
Additionally, improving the ability to stay healthy for longer years at a young age could save billions of dollars in health care costs and improve the quality of life for millions of people.
Rilminidine is a drug of interest
One noteworthy finding is the discovery of rilminidine, which has been used orally to treat high blood pressure for 30 years. After analyzing the data using machine learning techniques, a team led by molecular gerontologist Joan Pedro Magalhaes from the University of Birmingham tested it on Caenorhabditis elegans, small worms commonly used in aging research.
“For the first time we were able to prove that rilmenidine increases the lifespan of animals,” Magalhães confirmed.
The team also observed that older worms benefited almost as much as younger worms, suggesting that humans may not need to start treatment in middle age.
Mechanism of action of the drug
Rilminidine binds to imidazoline receptors on the cell membrane, which regulate metabolism. In worms, a receptor called nish-1 was necessary for the drug’s effect on lifespan. When this receptor was removed, the benefits disappeared, and when it was reintroduced, the lifespan-increasing effect returned.
After treatment, the process of autophagy increased, and the worms’ heat resistance improved, without any effect on growth or fertility, indicating that the drug only targets aging pathways.
Experiments on mammals
When the drug was tested in mice, liver and kidney tissue showed changes in gene expression similar to those caused by classical calorie restriction. Blood markers linked to metabolism also improved to youth-like levels, supporting the idea that the drug is activating ancient survival programs conserved across species.
Given that rilminidine is already approved, early human trials could focus directly on biomarkers such as inflammatory proteins, insulin sensitivity, and muscle strength. Another advantage is that the medicine is taken orally, which makes it more accessible compared to medicines that require injections or special diets.
Long-term human studies are still necessary to rule out any minor side effects and ensure that improvement in biomarkers translates into longer healthy years. However, experts see momentum building:
“With a global population aging, the benefits of delaying aging, even slightly, are enormous,” Magalhaes said.
New regulatory approvals are expected to require special guidelines for drugs targeting aging itself rather than a specific disease, while ethicists debate equitable access to these treatments. If rilminidine or similar compounds prove safe and effective, future generations may be able to stay healthy until age 80 using routine scientific method rather than relying on luck.
