A drug developed using artificial intelligence (AI) to treat a severe lung disease has shown an unexpected result: patients exhibited a decrease in indicators used to assess biological age.
The drug rentosertib, created by the biotechnology company Insilico Medicine, was tested on 43 individuals with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis. After 12 weeks of observation, six different 'aging clocks' recorded a reduction in the participants' estimated biological age.
The main goal of rentosertib is to treat idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), a chronic ailment that leads to thickening and scarring in lung tissue. As this condition progresses, the blood's ability to absorb oxygen decreases, and the disease can become fatal within a few years.
Insilico had previously noted in a clinical trial that the drug significantly improves patients' lung function. Researchers also collected data that allowed them to analyze possible changes related to biological age.
To do this, they applied six 'aging clocks'—systems that use different sets of biological markers to assess the age of cells, tissues, and organs. After twelve weeks of therapy, all six systems showed a reduction in the predicted biological age.
This is the first study to clearly demonstrate the possibility of reducing predicted biological age.
Vadim Gladshev, a professor at Harvard Medical School who participated in the development of one of these clocks, commented on the situation.
Insilico Medicine was founded in 2014 by Alex Zhavoronkov and has been working with AI-driven drug discovery methods for over ten years. One of the company's systems analyzes medical records, blood tests, and scientific research to identify proteins associated with diseases. Another system studies the structure of these proteins and how they interact with other molecules.
Thanks to this data, the technology helps design molecules capable of binding to specific biological targets. This is where rentosertib emerged. Zhavoronkov explained it as: 'It's like inspecting a lock and creating a key that fits into it.'
These results generate interest in longevity research, but they do not prove that rentosertib can slow down the aging process. The study has significant limitations: Insilico has not yet tested potential aging effects on healthy people, so it is unclear whether the observed reduction will be replicated in other groups.
Cardiologist Eric Topol, author of the book 'Super Aging,' noted: 'This drug looks promising. But we do not have a final trial yet to issue a final verdict.'
Despite the caveats, longevity researchers see this study as a potential path for future trials. Evelyn Bishop, a professor of medicine at Tel Aviv University, summarized: 'These are the methods we will use in future trials.'
The work demonstrates how AI can be applied not only to accelerate drug discovery but also to study biological changes associated with aging.