Slow down ageing with AI
While developed countries have the highest share of older persons, developing countries are also witnessing a rapid rate of population ageing, leaving many unprepared to address emerging challenges, including the rise of new diseases. The World Health Organization and United Nations estimate that by 2050, people aged 65 and above will surpass children under 5 years old worldwide for the first time in history. According to the World Health Organization, the percentage of people globally over 60 in that same year will nearly double from 12 to 22 per cent.
Ageing will eventually bring about an increased vulnerability to illnesses, disabilities, geriatric conditions, mental health challenges and other ailments that will necessitate enhanced medical care and long-term services and support. As a result, healthcare systems must be strengthened to address the increasing incidences of heart disease, cancer, diabetes, respiratory issues, cognitive decline, musculoskeletal disorders, frailty, incontinence and malnutrition.
For instance, chronic conditions contribute to over 75 per cent of healthcare expenditures for individuals aged 65 and above in the United States, amounting to over $1.5 trillion (Public Health Challenges and Responses to the Growing Ageing Populations - Khan - 2024 - Public Health Challenges - Wiley Online Library). This increasing healthcare expenditure for the ageing population calls for a strong focus on developing solutions for either a healthy ageing process or on slowing down ageing altogether.
In recent years, the landscape of ageing research has witnessed a huge breakthrough with the use of technology to reverse ageing and restore cellular functions. Stating an example, researchers at the Indraprastha Institute of Information Technology (IIIT) Delhi, in India, have introduced AgeXtend, an artificial intelligence (AI)-powered platform designed to discover molecules that could slow down ageing and promote healthier lives. AgeXtend is a unique platform that uses data from existing anti-ageing molecules to predict new ones. It does not just suggest potential candidates but also ensures their safety by checking for toxic effects and understanding how they work.
Likewise, scientists at the University of Edinburgh have developed an innovative method that employs AI to identify senolytic drugs, the agents that selectively induce apoptosis of cells responsible for ageing. By leveraging data from over 2,500 chemical structures extracted from past studies, the team successfully trained a machine-learning model to recognise the essential characteristics of chemicals possessing senolytic activity.
Another example is researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and Harvard University who have used AI to sort through hundreds of thousands of molecules in search of anti-ageing drugs. Using data from the screening of 2,352 compounds for senolytic activity, the ability to kill cells that no longer replicate and divide often due to ageing, the researchers are able to train a neural network to predict senolytic activity for over 800,000 molecules.
If these research initiatives eventually translate into successful outcomes, the question arises whether anti-ageing drugs might soon be available on pharmacy shelves. Experts at the Institute for Aging Research at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine in the US have predicted that it will take a few decades to see impactful gerotherapeutics, drugs that counter the ageing process, for the average person. This is because the key lies in discovering safe and effective drugs that target central mechanisms, like inflammation and cellular damage, that lead to ageing.
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Although geroscience has a long way to go, four US FDA-approved drugs (GLP-1, DPP-4, SGLT2 inhibitors, bisphosphonates, and metformin) have already shown promise in targeting the ageing process. While not approved as anti-ageing treatments, these drugs exhibit longevity potential, and their impact is yet to be seen.
With technologies such as AI and machine learning taking centre stage in the life sciences sector, the future surely looks bright in this direction!
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