Category Archives: Human Longevity

Craig Venters new company wants to improve human longevity by creating the worlds largest, most comprehensive database of genetic and physiological information.

Last week, genomics entrepreneur Craig Venter announced his latest venture: a company that will create what it calls the most comprehensive and complete data set on human health to tackle diseases of aging.

Human Longevity, based in San Diego, says it will sequence some 40,000 human genomes per year to start, using Illuminas new high-throughput sequencing machines (see Does Illumina Have the First $1,000 Genome?). Eventually, it plans to work its way up to 100,000 genomes per year. The company will also sequence the genomes of the bodys multitudes of microbial inhabitants, called the microbiome, and analyze the thousands of metabolites that can be found in blood and other patient samples.

By combining these disparate types of data, the new company hopes to make inroads into the enigmatic process of aging and the many diseases, including cancer and heart disease, that are strongly associated with it. Aging is exerting a force on humans that is exposing us to diseases, and the diseases are idiosyncratic, partly based on genetics, partly on environment, says Leonard Guarente, who researches aging at MIT and is not involved in the company. The hope for many of us who study aging is that by having interventions that hit key pathways in aging, we can affect disease.

But despite decades of research on aging and age-related diseases, there are no treatments to slow aging, and diseases like cancer, heart disease, and Alzheimers continue to plague patients. A more comprehensive approach to studying human aging could help, says Guarente. The key is to go beyond genome sequencing by looking at gene activity and changes in the array of proteins and other molecules found in patient samples.

To that end, Human Longevity will collaborate with Metabolon, a company based in Durham, North Carolina, to profile the metabolites circulating in the bloodstreams of study participants. Metabolon was an early pioneer in the field of metabolomics, which catalogues the amino acids, fats, and other small molecules in a blood or other sample to develop more accurate diagnostic tests for diseases (see 10 Emerging Technologies 2005: Metabolomics).

Metabolon uses mass spectrometry to identify small molecules in a sample. In a human blood sample, there are around 1,200 different types; Metabolons process can also determine the amount of each one present. While genome sequencing can provide information about inherited risk of disease and some hints of the likelihood that a person will have a long life, metabolic data provides information on how environment, diet, and other features of an individuals life affect health.

Metabolic data can also help researchers interpret the results of genome-based studies, which can often pinpoint a particular gene as important in a disease or a normal cellular process without clarifying what that gene actually does. If a particular metabolite is found to correlate with a particular genetic signal in a study, then researchers have a clue as to the function of the DNA signal.

And changes in blood metabolites are not just caused by changes in human cell behavior: the microbes that live in our bodies produce metabolites that can be detected in blood, says John Ryals, CEO and founder of Metabolon. When you get certain diseases, we believe your gut microbiome is changing its composition, and that leads to changes in what molecules are being made, he says.

Ryals says his company, working with collaborators, has already shown that blood biochemistry changes with aging: You can tell how old someone is just by looking at their metabolites.

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Microbes and Metabolites Fuel an Ambitious Aging Project

Human Longevity Inc. (HLI) is a genomics and cell therapy-based diagnostic and therapeutic company. Using advances in genomic sequencing, the human microbiome, proteomics, informatics, computing, and cell therapy technologies, HLI is building the worlds most comprehensive database on human genotypes and phenotypes to tackle the diseases associated with aging-related human biological decline. HLI is also leading the development of cell-based therapeutics to address age-related decline in endogenous stem cell function. HLI is concentrating on cancer, diabetes and obesity, heart and liver diseases, and dementia.

The market for healthy human longevity is enormous. Globally, total healthcare expenses run over $7 trillion, with nearly half of these funds being spent in the senior (65+) years of a persons life to help keep them alive longer. Using the combined power of HLIs core areas of expertise genomics, informatics, and stem cell therapies, HLI is going to change the way medicine is practiced by furthering the shift to a preventive, genomic-based medicine model.

HLI revenue streams will be derived from database licensing to pharmaceutical, biotechnology and academic organizations, sequencing, and development of advanced diagnostics and therapeutics.

HLI has secured $70 million in its initial round of funding. Our investors are a diverse group of individuals and companies who share our common goal and passion of changing healthcare, tackling the diseases of aging, and extending the healthy human lifespan.

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About Human Longevity, Inc.

Co-founders of San Diego based Human Longevity Inc., Peter Diamandis, left, J. Craig Venter, center, and Robert Hariri, right.

It was a bold prediction, even at a time when technology evolves with blinding speed:

Getting your genome sequenced will soon become as common as dropping by a doctors office for a blood test.

The forecast was made Tuesday by three men who have money riding on the outcome: La Jolla geneticist J. Craig Venter, New Jersey stem cell pioneer Dr. Robert Hariri and Peter Diamandis of Los Angeles, founder of the X-Prize Foundation.

They gathered in Venters seaside office to announce that they had founded Human Longevity, Inc. (HLI), which they say will quickly become the largest genome sequencing company in the world, surpassing even Chinas well-known Beijing Genomics Institute.

Venter said that HLI will begin by sequencing 40,000 genomes a year, then push production to 100,000. The work will be done with cutting edge technology from San Diegos Illumina, which has helped to slash the time and cost of sequencing peoples genomes.

Venter and other scientists believe that sequencing the genomes of hundreds of thousands of people will clearly reveal which genes cause disease and illness, leading to better diagnostics and treatment. HLI also will analyze a persons microbes and metabolites, providing doctors with a more comprehensive picture of the patients they treat.

The goal: Enable people to live longer, healthier lives.

100 will become the new 60, Diamandis said in a moment of exuberance.

The remark came as all three men paused to discussion the future of genomic medicine with U-T San Diego.

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Will 100 become the new 60?

Human Longevity, Inc. (HLI) is a genomics and cell therapy company focused on extending the healthy, high performance human lifespan. Led by a world-class team of scientific and medical visionaries, HLIs mission is to identify the therapeutically targetable mechanisms responsible for age-related human biological decline and to apply this intelligence to develop innovative solutions to interrupt or block those processes, meaningfully extending the human lifespan.

We are building a database of genotype and phenotype information together with data mining infrastructure, on a scale that has not ever been done before. We are trying to tackle some of the most vexing diseases like cancer, heart disease and diabetes. We are blazing a new trail in science, medicine and research and we need people who, like us, want to change the world. Our founders, along with our scientific and medical teams are impatient for the healthcare of the future. That is why we are working to change the way medicine is practiced through our genomic-focused, preventive model.

We are seeking world-class people who share our passion and want to play an integral role in executing the companys vision. If you are dynamic, innovative, creative, intelligent, and resourceful, consider joining our quest to improve the state of healthcare in the world today.

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Careers Human Longevity, Inc.

Human Longevity, Inc. Conference Call Audio (March 4, 2014)
Human Longevity Inc. (HLI) Launched to Promote Healthy Aging Using Advances in Genomics and Stem Cell Therapies. HLI is Building World #39;s Largest Genotype/Phenotype Database by Sequencing up...

By: Human Longevity, Inc.

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Human Longevity, Inc. Conference Call Audio (March 4, 2014) - Video

J. Craig Venter was one of the first scientists to sequence a human genome. A decade later, he's hoping to push genomics forward again with a new San Diego-based company.

In its Tuesday launch, Human Longevity Inc. outlined its goal to better understand the aging process by sequencing 40,000 genomes in its first year.

The scale of Venter's latest effort wouldn't be possible without progress made by another San Diego company, Illumina. Human Longevity Inc will rely on Illumina's latest gene sequencing technology, which brings the cost of sequencing an individual genome down to $1,000. That's quite a price cut from $100 million, the original cost of sequencing when Venter raced to complete the first genome.

Human Longevity co-founder Peter Diamandis believes it's now feasible to study enough sick and healthy people to pinpoint the genes driving long, healthy lifespans.

"We're going to be creating one of the world's largest databases," Diamandis said. "It will allow us to really unlock what's going on why some people live to be centenarians and why some people don't."

Consenting patients at UC San Diego's Moores Cancer Center will be among the first to have their genome sequenced by Human Longevity Inc. The company also wants to study healthy individuals 100 years and older.

Human Longevity plans to make money by eventually selling their data to researchers and biotech companies. And Diamandis thinks San Diego is a perfect home base for the new company.

"Just like Silicon Valley was the gravitational center for a lot of the computer and network and online startups, I think we're going to see San Diego become the gravitational center for a lot of biologics," he said.

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New San Diego Company Targets Aging With Lots (And Lots) Of Genome Sequencing

Photographer: Evan Hurd/J. Craig Venter Institute via Bloomberg

J. Craig Venter, the man who raced the U.S. government to sequence the first human genome, has a new goal: Help everyone live to 100, in good health.

Our goal is to make 100-years-old the new 60, said Peter Diamandis, who co-founded with Venter a company that aims to scan the DNA of as many as 100,000 people a year to create a massive database that will lead to new tests and therapies that can help extend healthy human life spans.

Human Longevity Inc. will use machines from Illumina Inc. (ILMN), which has a stake in the company, to decode the DNA of people from children to centenarians. San Diego-based Human Longevity will compile the information into a database that will include information on both the genome and the microbiome, the microbes that live in our gut. The aim is to help researchers understand and address diseases associated with age-related decline.

The company, with $70 million in initial funding, will focus first on cancer, according to a statement today.

We are setting up the worlds largest human genome sequencing facility, said Venter, who led a private team that sequenced one of the first two human genomes over a decade ago, in a telephone interview. The goal is to promote healthy aging using advanced genomics and stem cell therapy.

Venter started the closely held company with Diamandis, the X Prize Foundation chairman, and stem cell researcher Robert Hariri. Hariri is founder and chief scientific officer of Celgene (CELG) Cellular Therapeutics, a unit of Celgene Corp. that is working on stem cell treatments.

The speed and accuracy of DNA-scanning machines increased to the point that for the first time makes massive clinically oriented sequencing efforts possible, Venter said.

I have been waiting for 13 years for the technology to jump up to a scale that is needed for genomics to have a significant impact in medicine, Venter said. We have just crossed that threshold.

Human Longevity has an agreement with the University of California at San Diego to perform genome sequencing of patients at the Moores Cancer Center, according to the statement. In addition to providing DNA data to doctors at UCSD, the goal is to make individual genome data directly available to patients once the company meets U.S. regulatory standards for providing clinical-level information, said Heather Kowalski, a spokeswoman for Venter and the new company, in an e-mail.

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Venter Starts DNA-Scanning Company to Boost Longevity

SAN DIEGO A San Diego biotech startup announced plans Tuesday to create the largest human genome sequencing operation in the world.

Geneticist Craig Venter is one of the founders of Human Longevity Inc., a San Diego biotech company that plans to create the worlds largest human genome database. (Photo: Getty Images)

Executives with Human Longevity Inc., capitalized with $70 million in private investment, said they want to compile the most comprehensive and complete human genotype, microbiome, and phenotype database in order to tackle diseases associated with aging.

The company, led by geneticist J. Craig Venter, and Drs. Robert Hariri and Peter Diamandis will also address age-related decline in stem cell function.

Using the combined power of our core areas of expertise genomics, informatics, and stem cell therapies, we are tackling one of the greatest medical/scientific and societal challenges aging and aging-related diseases, Venter said. HLI is going to change the way medicine is practiced by helping to shift to a more preventive, genomic-based medicine model which we believe will lower healthcare costs.

He said the goal is not necessarily to lengthen life but to improve the health, performance and productivity.

By licensing its databases, the company should be able to generate income, he said.

The companys initial goal is to sequence up to 40,000 human genomes per year, with plans to sequence up to 100,000 human genomes per year. A variety of people will be sequenced, including children, adults and centenarians, as well as those who are healthy and who are not.

Researchers will concentrate on genes related to cancer, diabetes and obesity, heart and liver diseases, and dementia. They plan to collaborate with the UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center, the J. Craig Venter Institute and Metabolon Inc.

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Biotech startup plans massive human genome database

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Newswise The new collaborative research agreement between Human Longevity Inc. (HLI) and the University of California, San Diego, announced today, represents a significant and necessary step in efforts to research and translate the potential of the human genome into novel and real treatments and therapies able to change and improve the human condition.

This agreement brings together the resources of two entities that, in combination, may ultimately help improve countless lives, said David A. Brenner, MD, vice chancellor of health sciences at UC San Diego and dean of the UC San Diego School of Medicine. HLI aims to bring leading-edge thinking in genomics technologies. UC San Diego boasts some of the worlds finest researchers and physicians working at places like the Moores Cancer Center. Together, we will collaborate to marshal the people, the tools and the resources to really make a difference in human health.

HLIs goal is to initially sequence up to 40,000 human genomes per year, rising to 100,000 genomes annually. The data generated by HLI will be used to investigate and develop treatments for a wide array of diseases, from diabetes and obesity to conditions of the heart and liver, plus ailments related to aging and biological decline.

The initial focus of the effort at UC San Diego will be cancer. UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center (MCC) will work with HLI to develop protocols and procedures to conduct comprehensive genomic sequencing of consenting MCC patients. The resulting sequence data will be analyzed by UC San Diego scientists implementing both experimental and computational approaches.

This is ground-breaking research, said Scott Lippman, MD, director of MCC and the agreements principal investigator. The therapeutic promise of genomics is far-reaching. Gathering the genomic data is the first step of the research process. Cancer is a target-rich environment and current pace at which genomics discoveries are moving from the lab to the clinic is unprecedented. Being able to sequence at this scale, with this depth of detail and complexity, will accelerate discovery and make it easier to translate these findings to benefit our patients.

Razelle Kurzrock, MD, who will serve as co-principal investigator and is senior deputy director for clinical science at MCC, emphasized that this partnership provides an unparalleled opportunity to understand the immense complexity of cancers. While the work is completely within the research realm right now, this visionary initiative is anticipated to rapidly yield transformative discoveries in the cancer field.

UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center UC San Diego Moores Cancer Center is home to more than 350 medical and radiation oncologists, cancer surgeons, and researchers. It is one of only 41 National Cancer Institute-designated comprehensive cancer centers in the country, a rare honor distinguishing exceptionally high achievement in research, clinical care, education and community outreach and partnerships. For more information, visit cancer.ucsd.edu

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Agreement Seeks to Accelerate Medical Science

Increase Your Life Expectancy with the Okinawan Diet - The Morning Show
A documentary about the health and longevity of Okinawa - and a warning of the health dangers posed by modern #39;American lifestyles #39;. VISIT: . Gosia Desmond w...

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Increase Your Life Expectancy with the Okinawan Diet - The Morning Show - Video