We cant avoid aging. Every passing minute brings us one minute closer to the end. Not a pleasant thought. So, it is little wonder that the term anti-aging has been seized by marketers of various cosmetics, health supplements, exotic juices and dietary regimens. Anti-aging medicine is a growing field with numerous biotech companies working on drugs designed to combat the aging process.

The quest for immortality, of course, is not new. The ancient alchemists sought to turn base metals like lead into gold in order to find the secret of golds immortality. After all, the metal would not tarnish, it maintained its beautiful sheen and seemed to last forever. If they could find its magic, they could perhaps apply it to humans. But they never did find the secret. Lead is still lead and the alchemists are long dead.

This is not to say that there are not some intriguing possibilities that may help slow down the clock. As we age, an increasing number of our cells enter a stage of senescence in which they no longer divide and begin to release chemicals that cause inflammation resulting in damage to tissues. A buildup of senescent cells, sometimes called zombie cells, is a hallmark of aging. Can anything be done to prevent this buildup? Possibly. At least in mice. When researchers at the Mayo Clinic injected just a small number of senescent cells into young mice, their speed, endurance and strength eroded to that seen in a senior mouse in just a few weeks. When the mice were then treated with desatinib and quercetin, a combination of drugs known to destroy senescent cells, they recovered most of their lost physical capabilities within two weeks! Quite dramatic! But mice are not people, and while quercetin is a safe compound extracted from apple peel, desatinib is a very expensive leukemia drug with loads of side effects. Still, this experiment is a proof of principle, demonstrating that destroying senescent cells with senolytics is worthy of exploration.

However, slowing aging may not be a matter of what we do, but what we dont do. It may be that if we want to live longer, all we have to do is eat less. Calorie restriction has been the only sure-fire way that scientists have found to slow aging in animals from rodents to monkeys and now we are beginning to accumulate data that suggests this applies to humans, as well. The idea that less is more when it comes to eating is not new. Hippocrates noted that fat people were more likely to die suddenly than slender ones, and Avicenna, the famed Persian philosopher and physician, suggested that the elderly should eat less than when they were younger.

Venetian nobleman Luigi Cornaro may have been the first to put a restricted calorie diet to a test in the 17th century when he came to believe that his health was deteriorating due to excessive partaking of food, drink and sex. He then restricted himself to no more than 350 grams of food a day and 400 mL of wine and lived to the ripe old age of 98. He documented his regimen in his book Discourses On the Temperate Life and described how the changes he made in his lifestyle allowed him to remain in vigorous health well into old age.

Today, members of the Calorie Restriction Society that has the goal of increasing longevity are following in Cornaros footsteps and are acting as human guinea pigs. They consume no more than 2,000 calories per day, which is just over half of what an average North American wolfs down. They dont do this, though, by eating half servings of hamburger, fries or pizza. They do it by following a diet high in whole grains, fruits, vegetables, beans and fish. And according to a study published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, the austere regimen is paying off. Researchers examined the heart function of 25 members of the Calorie Restriction Society, and to their amazement found that the hearts functioned like those of people 15 years younger. But permanent hunger is not appealing.

What is appealing, however, is taking a deep dive into the science of aging. That is just what we will do this year at our annual Trottier Public Science Symposium, one of McGills largest annual public events. We have invited three expert speakers to address humans Longing for Longevity. On Tuesday, Oct. 22, Harvard Professor of Genetics David Sinclair, a world leader in aging research, will discuss how aging may be a treatable disease, and cosmetic chemist Kelly Dobos will scrutinize claims made by producers of anti-aging cosmetics. On Wednesday, Oct. 23, Ruth Westheimer, psychosexual therapist, author and pioneer of radio and television programs dealing with sexual issues will speak on Sex After 50. (Spoiler: there is.)

The symposium will take place at 7 p.m. both days at the Centre Mont Royal, 1000 Sherbrooke St. West. Admission is free. Arrive early.

joe.schwarcz@mcgill.ca

Joe Schwarcz is director of McGill Universitys Office for Science & Society (mcgill.ca/oss). He hosts The Dr. Joe Show on CJAD Radio 800 AM every Sunday from 3 to 4 p.m.

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The Right Chemistry: Looking for the secrets to longevity - Montreal Gazette