Stem cells have been written into expert consensus again! Consensus of Chinese Geriatrics Clinical Experts on Delaying Aging Drug Intervention Research (2024)

Source: Official media/online news

According to the latest intervention study on anti-aging drugs published in the Chinese Journal of Geriatrics, the consensus of Chinese geriatric experts (2024)

The abstract section:

Aging and delaying aging are hot topics in the forefront of life science research today. Finding methods to delay aging is of great significance for improving the physical functions of the elderly and increasing their healthy lifespan.

At present, the intervention methods for delaying aging mainly include drug intervention, beauty intervention, nutritional intervention, psychological intervention, and exercise intervention.

The role of drug intervention in delaying aging is irreplaceable, but there are still different opinions and controversies on the criteria for determining its anti-aging effect, the pathways and methods of intervention in aging, and so on.

Clinicians in the field of geriatric medicine need to update their understanding of key issues such as "what are anti-aging strategies", "what are the main promising anti-aging drugs", and "what are the main ways for human intervention in aging". In view of this, we have convened relevant experts in the field of anti-aging drug intervention research for academic discussions, comprehensively sorting out and summarizing the mechanism of action, preclinical and clinical evidence, and progress of current anti-aging hot spot drugs, mainly involving Class I drugs, Class II drugs, stem cell therapy, and traditional Chinese medicine. We have explored the possibility of clinical testing and application of selected drugs and intervention strategies, and formed the "Consensus of Chinese Geriatrics Experts on Anti Aging Drug Intervention Research (2024)" to promote the clinical transformation of anti-aging drug intervention research and provide assistance for improving the health and medical level of middle-aged and elderly people.In the main text, the expert consensus has specially created a separate chapter to introduce stem cell therapy:

Stem cell therapy:

Stem cells are a type of undifferentiated (embryonic stem cells) or poorly differentiated (adult stem cells) primitive cells that can self renew and replicate in the body, as well as differentiate into other terminal differentiated cells (functional cells such as nerve cells, pancreatic islet cells, liver cells, muscle cells, etc.). Under normal conditions, stem cells are in a dormant state, but under stimuli such as damage or aging in the body, stem cells are activated by injury factors, differentiate into functional cells, and replace damaged or aging cells, thereby maintaining a dynamic balance between the regeneration and aging of body tissues and organs. Research has shown that the functional reserve of adult tissue stem cells decreases with age, weakening the regenerative potential of tissue organs.

Stem cell therapy is considered an effective method for supplementing regenerated cells. The clinical trial results showed that injection of stem cells in elderly frail patients improved certain symptoms and decreased levels of inflammatory markers. A study on the infusion of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) for the treatment of frail aging patients has shown that transplantation of bone marrow-derived MSCs has beneficial effects in frail aging patients, improving their 6-minute walking distance, cognitive status, and physical function [88].

In addition, stem cell therapy has also been applied and studied in the field of treating age-related diseases. In 2018, AstroStem, a MSCs drug used to treat dementia in the elderly, was approved for commercial use at the Sany Clinic in Fukuoka, Japan.

In addition, there has been increasing attention paid to extracellular vesicles and mitochondria derived from stem cells.

The technology based on stem cells and their derivatives has shown great clinical application prospects in delaying aging and treating age-related diseases, providing new ideas for solving the clinical difficulties of age-related diseases.

Suggestion and Recommendation 13: Stem cell therapy is a scientific strategy for delaying aging, but research in this area is still in its early stages, with unclear mechanisms of action and in vivo metabolism. We need to strengthen standardized management, carry out large-scale and rigorously designed transformation research, and promote the implementation of stem cell transformation in this field.