A protein that promotes inflammation could hold the key to a longer, healthier life. Blocking the protein, called IL-11, in middle-aged mice boosted metabolism, reduced frailty and increased lifespan by about 25%.
Although a research team tested for these health effects only in mice, IL-11 and its molecular partners — which include chemical messengers for the immune system called interleukins — also exist in humans. And drug candidates that block IL-11 are already in human trials against cancer and fibrosis, a condition associated with ageing in which scar tissue replaces healthy tissue.
The new results, reported on 17 July in Nature1, suggest that those potential treatments might also have an impact on longevity, but separate clinical trials are needed to be certain.
Still, IL-11’s clear path to testing in humans distinguishes it from the crowd of other proteins and rejuvenation interventions, many of which have shown promise in animal models but stalled on the way to clinical trials. “There’s a real opportunity here to translate this into clinical therapies,” says Cathy Slack, who studies the biology of ageing at the University of Warwick, UK. “And that’s where the field is kind of stuck at the moment.”
Mitiigating chronic inflammation is the key to curing many of our diseases.
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