Modest, but a success

Clinical trials of the drug "from old cells" did not harm anyone. And someone even helped

They relieved knee pain in some patients with osteoarthritis, and did not cause serious side effects in anyone

Polina Loseva, "The Attic"

Unity Biotechnology has summed up the results of the first phase of the first-ever clinical trials of a new senolytic. The dosages of the drug proved to be safe, and some of them even proved to be effective for patients with knee joint inflammation, osteoarthritis. They did not cure the disease itself during the tests, but they reduced the pain syndrome.

Many gerontologists around the world are searching for a cure for old age, but they have no right to test them directly, since old age, as such, is not considered a disease. We have to follow roundabout ways: choose some age-related disease and test the drug for effectiveness against it. If it works, then it can be prescribed to elderly people and in any case improve their quality of life, and at the same time collect statistics on whether this life will be longer. So, for example, they are already doing with rapamycin, a potential "youth pill" that is being tested for the ability to strengthen the immunity of older people: the second phase of clinical trials of the drug has been completed, and its creators are waiting for permission from the FDA to move to the third.

Unity Biotechnology has announced that another drug has passed the first stage of clinical trials. It refers to senolytics, that is, substances that destroy aged cells in human tissues. These cells are considered one of the causes of aging of the body and are blamed for the development of a variety of diseases: from obesity to dementia.

Decrepit cells do not multiply, but they are not able to die either: the program of apoptosis, that is, cellular suicide, is blocked in them. Senolytics remove this blockage, and the cell dies.

Many antitumor drugs operate on the same principle, therefore, already known cancer drugs are often tested as senolytics, but in lower dosages.

Unity Biotechnology tested the drug UBX0101, also known as AT2363, or navitoclax, an experimental antitumor substance. It was tested on patients suffering from osteoarthritis of the knee joint. None of them developed severe side effects, and no one stopped treatment prematurely because of this. 30 patients who were treated for a month did not notice significant improvements. But in a group of 48 people who received the drug for 3 months, the effect was registered – the drug did not affect the overall structure of the joint, judging by MRI scans, but reduced pain in patients compared to those who were in the control group and received a placebo.

In addition, the researchers measured the concentration of pro-inflammatory substances in the articular (synovial) fluid (which is essentially blood plasma). Old cells secrete a set of such molecules to attract the attention of the immune system, and thereby increase inflammation in the tissue. According to experts, reducing the concentration of at least 3 substances out of 24 would be enough to recognize the tests as successful. After 4 weeks of therapy, the concentration of 8 substances decreased in patients. In the group that was treated for three months, concentrations could not be assessed – there was not enough biomaterial for accurate measurements.

Thus, senolytics have successfully moved one step closer to clinical use. Unity Biotechnology plans to test on a larger sample of patients and test the second product, UBX1967, against age–related eye pathologies.

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