A DRUG THAT has been found to significantly increase the lifespan of mice may point to the possibility of its potential use in humans, a study from the Imperial College of London has found. 

The study, which was conducted by scientists at the Medical Research Council Laboratory of Medical Science and Imperial College London, discovered that ‘switching off’ a protein called IL-11 can significantly increase the healthy lifespan of mice by almost 25%. 

Working with colleagues at Duke-NUS Medical School in Singapore, the scientists tested the effects of the protein by creating mice that had the gene producing the protein deleted. This extended the lives of the mice by over 20% on average. 

The treatment largely reduced deaths from cancer in the animals as well as reducing the many diseases caused by fibrosis, chronic inflammation and poor metabolism, all of which are hallmarks of ageing. 

Very few side effects were observed. 

They also treated 75-week-old mice, equivalent to the age of about 55 years in humans, with an injection of an anti-IL-11 antibody to stop the effects of the protein in the body.

Mice given the anti-IL-11 drug from 75 weeks of age until death had their media lifespan extended by 22.4% in males and 25% in females. 

Co-corresponding author Professor Stuart Cook said that the findings were very exciting. 

“The treated mice had fewer cancers, and were free from the usual signs of ageing and fragility, but we also saw reduced muscle wasting and improvement in muscle strength,” he said. 

Previously proposed life-extending drugs had either poor side-effects, didn’t work in both sexes, or its extension of life was not healthy, Cook said. 

While these findings are only in mice, it raises the tantalising possibility that the drugs could have a similar effect in elderly humans.”

“Anti-IL-11 treatments are currently in human clinical trials for other conditions, potentially proving exciting opportunities to study its effects in ageing humans in the future,” he added.

Previously, scientists proposed that IL-11 is an evolutionary hangover in humans. While it is vital for limb regeneration is some animal species, it is thought to be largely redundant in humans.

After the age of 55, more IL-11 is produced and past research has linked this to chronic inflammation, fibrosis in organs, disorders of metabolism, muscle wasting, fragility and cardiac fibrosis, the researchers laid out. These conditions are many of the signs associated with ageing.

The scientists cautioned that the results in this study were in mice, and the safety and effectiveness of these treatments in humans needs further establishing in clinical trails before people consider using anti-IL-11 drugs for this purpose.