Are there senolytics in human clinical trials? If not, how long will it take for senolytics to start to be tested in humans? Yes, there are roughly 10 to 20 clinical trials of senolytics in humans at the moment. This is very specific to eliminate the senescent cells, which target senescent cells. There are also some drugs, which might have senolytic side effects. Metformin and other drugs, but we do not know why there is a senolytic function. Dr. Andrea B. Maier, MD. Dr. Anton Titov, MD. It might be just the side effect because of mechanisms of drug action. It may lead to the elimination of senescent cells. Dr. Andrea B. Maier, MD. Dr. Anton Titov, MD. So senolytics are not yet being given in clinical practice because senolytics are not proven. That's very important that in clinical practice, we only give drugs if they are proven. We must eliminate drugs with side effects. And you already hear the voice of a physician liking evidence-based medicine. So be careful, just watching videos and looking at the web, if there are senolytics already on the market because it's not proven yet that senolytics help humans. Senolytics are in very good randomized control trials at the moment. We will evaluate if senolytics should be part of medical care in the next decade. This is very interesting, you mentioned Metformin. Dr. Andrea B. Maier, MD. Dr. Anton Titov, MD. Metformin has been in clinical use for over 50 years. Its safety profile is very well known. I understand in people with Type 2 diabetes metformin is used at 1000 milligrams per day, split in two doses. Sometimes medications have different effects, depending on the dose. So for potential senolytic action of Metformin, are the doses higher or lower or the same as they are used in diabetes? We do not know yet. Look, I prescribe Metformin very often. So internal medicine specialists use Metformin in up to three grams a day. But we do not know how much Metformin we should prescribe for what. So the study being run by Dr. Nir Barzilai in the Albert Einstein College in the US will hopefully at least give us clues if Metformin is working as a geroprotector. It means lowering the biological age. There was the incidence of age-related diseases. But we are not yet there to say how long a certain drug should be taken, what the frequency should be, and what the dosage should be. Because it's not just taking a senolytic drug regularly once or twice a day, but also what is the duration for what kind of effect. Dr. Andrea B. Maier, MD. Dr. Anton Titov, MD. Is the effect long-lasting or not? So this all has to be proven by using rigorous methodology. It is very important to build up a specialty like longevity medicine. We must be recognized in the clinical surrounding we are in. Also health insurers, for example, are going to pay for the interventions, we would suggest, making it publicly available for not only the people who can pay but also the people who are just insured. Dr. Andrea B. Maier, MD. Dr. Anton Titov, MD.
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