AI-developed drug rentosertib shows signs of slowing biological aging in trial

An experimental AI-designed drug for lung disease appeared to make patients biologically younger in a small trial. Per Insilico Medicine, patients taking rentosertib showed shifts of 2.7 to 3.5 years on aging clocks, though researchers caution the results are preliminary and may reflect disease improvement.

Bottom line — Insilico's phase 2a trial of 42 patients found rentosertib reduced biological age markers by up to 3.5 years, but larger trials are needed.

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• The drug, rentosertib, was developed by Insilico Medicine using AI to target the TNIK protein for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, per TechSpot.
• Six aging clocks detected shifts toward younger predicted ages among treated patients, while placebo recipients showed little change, according to a study in Nature Biotechnology.
• At week four, patients taking 60mg daily showed reductions of roughly 2.7 to 3.5 years on four chronological-age clocks, per TechSpot.
• Fox News reports that in one case, a patient appeared up to six years younger.
• Researchers acknowledge they cannot fully separate effects on aging from improvements in lung disease, per both outlets.
• Insilico has announced a phase 3 trial targeting lung disease with 320 participants over 52 weeks, per TechSpot.
• The most common side effects included mild diarrhea, slightly lower potassium, and temporary liver enzyme increases, per Fox News.

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