Research from the University of Exeter shows that drugs that release small amounts of hydrogen sulfide (H2S) can enhance the health and mobility of aging adult worms by improving mitochondrial integrity and muscle activity. The study uses a molecule called AP39 to target H2S to specific cellular regions, revealing the potential for new treatments for healthy aging and age-related diseases, including neurodegenerative and muscle diseases.
A study conducted at the University of Exeter has found that by using an H2S-releasing molecule called AP39 to direct trace amounts of H2S to specific areas of cells in adult worms, their health and activity can be improved as they age.
New research suggests that drugs that release trace amounts of hydrogen sulfide gas (H2S) may be a future treatment to help people live longer and healthier lives.
A study conducted by the University of Exeter, funded by the US Army and the charity Mitochondrial Diseases Foundation, found that using an H2S-releasing molecule called AP39 to target tiny amounts of H2S to specific areas of adult worm cells can significantly improve their health and activity as they age. The study, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), concludes that targeting H2S to cells' energy-generating machinery (mitochondria) could one day serve as a healthy aging therapy.
The team injected some worms with AP39 after they were born and others as adults. They found that the compound improved the integrity of mitochondria - the cellular "powerhouses" that provide energy to our cells and keep the worms' muscles active and moving, even into old age.
Many age-related diseases are associated with loss of mitochondrial function, including natural aging, neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's disease, as well as muscular dystrophy and primary mitochondrial diseases.
The team also discovered a group of proteins (transcription factors) that regulate how genes are expressed during aging. They found that these transcription factors are specific targets of H2S. The discovery could lead to new targets for treating aging and age-related diseases, particularly those affecting muscles.
Professor Tim Etheridge, senior author of the study from the University of Exeter, said: "Worms are powerful genetic tools for studying human health and disease, providing a powerful platform to quickly identify new potential treatments. Diseases associated with ageing take a huge toll on society. Our findings suggest that administering tiny amounts of H2S to specific parts of cells could one day be used to help people live longer and healthier lives."
In previous studies, the team found they could successfully target skeletal muscle using H2S in worms, but the new paper is the first to apply this technique to natural aging.
The University of Exeter has transferred this underlying technology to its spin-out company MitoRx Therapeutics, which has developed next-generation compounds with improved pharmaceutical properties as potential treatments for diseases of aging, including neurodegenerative diseases such as Huntington's disease and rare childhood diseases such as muscular dystrophy.
Professor Matt Whiteman, co-author of the study from the University of Exeter, said: "This research is not about extending life, but about enabling people to live healthier as they age. This will bring huge benefits to society. We are excited to see this research move to the next stage in the coming years and hope that one day it will form the basis of new treatments that we may potentially develop in partnership with MitoRx."
"We saw a slight increase in the lifespan of the worms that targeted H2S, and what's unique here is that we extended healthspan - or how long they lived healthy. The worms still died, albeit later than normally expected, but they did so very actively and physiologically young."