Our Mission & Massively Transformative Purpose
The Epigenetic Clock Development Foundation (“Clock Foundation”) is a UCLA spin-out and non-profit that is speeding the availability of treatments that prolong health and life expectancy. We are focused especially on the use of epigenetic aging clocks and adaptive clinical trials. We will identify and develop key enabling technologies that are critical for this mission, identify promising teams that are able to use them, and make them available to our partners, including researchers, physicians/clinics, contract research organizations, and drug development companies.
Epigenetic aging clocks are strong indicators of biological age, the reversal of which promises to lower the risk of multiple chronic diseases and to preserve the immune system. Both human studies and preclinical studies indicate that epigenetic clocks are a promising surrogate endpoint for anti-aging clinical trials.
We aim to reduce the cost of epigenetic testing, to carry out mechanistic studies, and to develop increasingly powerful biomarkers for predicting healthspan and lifespan (including a rapid, safe and effective testing regime for humans, model organisms, and companion pets as well). We will provide testing and analysis of several biomarkers of aging including epigenetic aging clocks, markers of immunosenescence, and organ dysfunction. This work will culminate in qualifying several biomarkers of aging as surrogate trial endpoints.
We are conducting many proof-of-concept aging studies through partners and collaborators, and we plan to enable efficient and large-scale preclinical and clinical trial infrastructure both in the U.S. and internationally. Our team is seasoned in healthcare and the life sciences with deep experience in basic research and its clinical translation. It includes researchers from the TRIIM trial, a recent study that demonstrated the reversal of epigenetic aging and key
aspects of immunosenescence in healthy older men aged 50 to 65.
Why Us? Why Now?
Findings from the lab of Dr. Steve Horvath over the past 10 years are ushering in a revolution in aging research. This work was enabled by highly collaborative sharing of data from hundreds of clinical studies and tens of thousands of patients. This unprecedented degree of sharing and availability of digital data would not have been possible until 15 years ago. In 2019, our team demonstrated for the first time that human epigenetic aging could be reversed using a combination of repurposed FDA-approved drugs. This landmark study highlighted the need for a non-profit infrastructure that rigorously evaluates and develops promising anti-aging treatments. We believe that despite intense public interest and early-stage venture investment in longevity medicine, the absence of clear regulatory guidance and incentives are impeding its proper development. If we do not address these challenges, decades will pass without development and validation of highly effective, affordable, and safe forms of preventive medicine that target the biology of aging.
Impact & Our Massively Transformative Purpose
Our mission is to enable everyone to achieve longevity escape velocity using safe and affordable interventions. We aim to do this by making epigenetic aging clock technology much more widely available and to ensure its rigorous use for both clinical and preclinical studies. We will be guided in part by the same approach the FDA takes, helping ensure new treatments are both safe and effective, however we will help craft and establish their approach to approving preventive medicine through regulatory development work on epigenetic aging clocks. Our foundation has a focus on continuing to achieve unprecedented clinical and preclinical trial results. We also however have a longer-term, deeper and broader approach, including acquiring a thorough understanding of the fundamental biology and mechanisms of the aging process, especially though the powerful new “lens” of epigenetic aging and epigenetic aging clocks. We consider this to be an essential element that constitutes the foundation upon which our goals are based.