Aging-US: From causes of aging to death from COVID-19

10-05-2020

Aging-US recently published "From Causes of Aging to Death from COVID-19" by Blagosklonny et al. which reported that COVID-19 is not deadly early in life, but mortality increases exponentially with age - which is the strongest predictor of mortality.

The Review covers:

  1. Age
  2. Age-related diseases
  3. Male Gender
  4. Mortality from aging compared with COVID-19 mortality
  5. Age-related diseases
  6. Cytokine storm as a hyperfunction
  7. Hyperfunction theory of quasi-programmed aging
  8. Covid-19 vulnerability as an age-related syndrome
  9. Inflamm-aging and immunosenescence
  10. Cellular senescence as a continuation of growth
  11. Figuratively, rapamycin rejuvenates immunity
  12. Anti-aging medicine
  13. Rapamycin and everolimus as anti-aging drugs and,
  14. Potential applications of rapamycin/everolimus to COVID-19

The author contends that at its deepest level, aging is driven by inappropriately high cellular functioning. The hyperfunction theory of quasi-programmed aging explains why COVID-19 vulnerability is an age-dependent syndrome, linking it to other age-related diseases.

These conditions are typical age-related diseases: hypertension, diabetes, obesity, ischemic heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and other diseases.

This is because pre-existing conditions are manifestations of biological age, ultimately meaning that A. aging and B. diseases are two sides of the same coin.

The Blagosklonny Research Team goes on to highlight that an anti-aging intervention, such as rapamycin, may slow aging and age-related diseases, potentially decreasing COVID-19 vulnerability.

The Aging-US Review also reported that as soon as the COVID-19 epidemic started, it became clear that COVID-19 vulnerability is an aging-dependent condition, and the use of rapamycin was immediately suggested by independent researchers.

Figure 5. Prevention of COVID-19 vulnerability by staying young. Hypothetical graph in the absence of COVID-19. COVID-19 vulnerability (log scale) increases exponentially with age (blue line). The line ends at age 120, a maximum recorded age for humans. In theory, a continuous rapamycin treatment would slow down an increase of the vulnerability with age (red line). The increase is still logarithmic but at a different slope, because rapamycin slows the aging process. The maximum lifespan, in the absence of COVID-19, is extended because the 100% natural death threshold is achieved later.

By decreasing biological age and preventing age-related diseases, long-term rapamycin therapy may, in theory, decrease the COVID-19 mortality rate in the elderly.

As specifically discussed in the Review section titled “Figuratively, rapamycin rejuvenates immunity”, mTOR inhibitors can improve immunity to viral infections, improve immunization and vaccination to some viruses such as the flu.

The hypothetical graph in the absence of COVID-19. COVID-19 vulnerability increases exponentially with age.

Then as discussed in the section “Cytokine storm is a hyperfunction”, cytokine storm and hyper-inflammation is the main cause of death in COVID-19 pneumonia Rapamycin, an anti-inflammatory agent, inhibits hyper-functions, cellular senescence and decrease secretion of cytokines.

DOI - https://doi.org/10.18632/aging.103493

Full Text - https://www.aging-us.com/article/103493/text#fulltext

Correspondence to: Mikhail V. Blagosklonny email: Blagosklonny@oncotarget.com or Blagosklonny@rapalogs.com

Keywords: aging, mTOR, transcription, rapalogs, senolytics SARS-CoV-2 COVID-19 coronavirus

About Aging-US:

Aging publishes research papers in all fields of aging research including but not limited, aging from yeast to mammals, cellular senescence, age-related diseases such as cancer and Alzheimer’s diseases and their prevention and treatment, anti-aging strategies and drug development and especially the role of signal transduction pathways such as mTOR in aging and potential approaches to modulate these signaling pathways to extend lifespan. The journal aims to promote treatment of age-related diseases by slowing down aging, validation of anti-aging drugs by treating age-related diseases, prevention of cancer by inhibiting aging. Cancer and COVID-19 are age-related diseases.

Aging is indexed by PubMed/Medline (abbreviated as “Aging (Albany NY)”), PubMed CentralWeb of Science: Science Citation Index Expanded (abbreviated as “Aging‐US” and listed in the Cell Biology and Geriatrics & Gerontology categories), Scopus (abbreviated as “Aging” and listed in the Cell Biology and Aging categories), Biological Abstracts, BIOSIS Previews, EMBASE, META (Chan Zuckerberg Initiative) (2018-2022), and Dimensions (Digital Science).

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