The therapy combined two anti-aging treatments. The first is oxytocin<\/a> (OT), an age-dependent natural hormone and neurotransmitter that \u2013 among functions involving social bonding and reproduction \u2013 aids in muscle growth<\/a> and tissue repair.<\/p>\n Related: Cannabis Revealed to Have Anti-Aging Effect in The Brains of Mice<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Second, an Alk5 inhibitor (A5i), known to target what’s called the transforming growth factor beta (TGF-beta) pathway. This chemical communication channel becomes overactive as we age, damaging tissue and increasing persistent inflammation<\/a>.<\/p>\n “Treatment of old frail male mice with OT+A5i resulted in a remarkable 73 percent life extension from that time, and a 14 percent increase in the overall median lifespan,” write<\/a> the researchers in their published paper.<\/p>\n The test animals were all 25-month-old mice; the equivalent of 75 years in humans. Treated males not only lived longer, but also showed improvements in physical performance, measures of blood proteins, and short-term memory<\/a>, indicating a reversal of some of the limitations that come with old age.<\/p>\n As for why this didn’t work at all with female mice, more research will be required to find out, though plenty of previous anti-aging studies<\/a> have found differences between the sexes. It’s not a complete surprise.<\/p>\n “The causes of these sex-based differences remain unknown, albeit we note that treatment of female mice with OT+A5i at late middle-age rejuvenates fertility,” write<\/a> the researchers.<\/p>\n The researchers suggest that future studies could investigate treating female mice at a younger age.<\/p>\n Whether similar therapies could extend health and lifespan in humans would also require ongoing research. Not only do anti-aging treatments have to be effective, they need to be free of significant side effects \u2013 something which has proved to be a problem<\/a> with certain other approaches that otherwise showed promise.<\/p>\n While the body’s biological pathways can be tweaked to counter some of the low-level changes that old age brings, that can then lead to disruption in other areas. It’s a careful balance that isn’t easy to manage.<\/p>\n What is encouraging is that oxytocin already has regulatory approval<\/a> as a treatment for inducing labor and making it run more smoothly, while A5i drugs are now being tested as a way of treating cancer<\/a>. That could expedite the process of checking for side effects when it comes to using them as an anti-aging treatment.<\/p>\n That’s still some way off, but even if this particular drug combination never materializes as an actual product, the study offers some really useful pointers for developing treatments to slow aging \u2013 treatments that are increasingly in demand<\/a> as the global population gets older.<\/p>\n “These findings establish the significant health-span extension capacity of OT+A5i and emphasize the differences in aging and in response to longevity therapeutics between the sexes,” write<\/a> the researchers.<\/p>\n![\"Mouse](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/SurvivalChart.jpg\")
Treated male mice lived longer than controls, though the same effects weren’t there for females. (Kato et al., Aging, 2025)<\/p>\n![\"Win](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/Mid-Article-Promo-Astro-642x272.jpg\")
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