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AgelessRx Submits LDN Proposal to National Aging Institute

AgelessRx Submits LDN Proposal to National Aging Institute

Here at AgelessRx, we are passionate about reducing and reversing age-related diseases so that you can have more time to live a high-quality life with the people you love. As such, we are working to get more traction on clinical and scientific studies that can help us learn more about how Low Dose Naltrexone (LDN) may impact longevity.

We recently submitted an official proposal to the Interventions Testing Program (ITP) at the National Institute on Aging (NIA) in an effort to garner support for clinical studies to test LDN’s impact on longevity. If our proposal is selected to be included in the ITP study, the research team at AgelessRx will be involved in investigating treatments that may extend lifespan and delay disease in mice.

Testing LDN for longevity from AgelessRx’s official proposal to the ITP

Here are the top three takeaways from our official proposal to the NIA:

  1. LDN’s mechanisms of action have promising effects to control cell proliferation and reduce chronic inflammation

    LDN blocks two key receptors in the body: toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) and Opioid growth factor (OGF) receptor.

    TLR4 is a transmembrane protein that is involved in producing inflammatory cytokines (in other words, proteins that signal to cells in the body that something is “wrong”). Inflammation is important to signal the immune system to take action during illness or injury, but excessive inflammation is detrimental to the body and can cause chronic pain.

    OGF receptors typically bind to a molecule called met-enkephalin (or OGF). OGF is a peptide made in the body that has opioid effects and acts as a neurotransmitter that can impact the feelings of pain and emotion. Blocking OGF receptors with LDN “tricks” the body into thinking that there is not enough OGF, and the body produces more OGF and OGF receptors in response. Elevated levels of OGF and OGF receptors may boost the immune system and reduce inflammation.
  2. There are several clinical examples that show the efficacy of LDN for various conditions

    LDN has many therapeutic uses, including treating symptoms for fibromyalgia, Crohn’s disease, psoriasis, inflammatory bowel disease, autoimmune diseases (such as Hashimoto’s disease) and more. Many patients have also reported lesser frequency of sinus and respiratory tract infections, as well as improvements in atopic conditions such as asthma, eczema, and allergic rhinitis.
  3. We have theories about the mechanisms of action and use of LDN, but we need to learn more about how LDN impacts longevity

    If the theory holds true that LDN lowers inflammation and modulates the immune system, these mechanisms have promising effects that could reduce or reverse many age-related diseases. It offers protective benefits against neurodegenerative diseases, where chronic inflammation is often the underlying cause. It has antioxidant properties that can reduce the effects of free radicals throughout the body. LDN is a relatively affordable drug, which could make it easily accessible for many people. LDN also has an extensive safety record. All these reasons make LDN a promising drug to test in the NIA’s ITP.

What’s next?

We hope we can help foster more research on how LDN impacts longevity. Check back on our blog regularly for more updates on LDN in the longevity space.

Read our feature in Longevity Technology here.