Fernandez Lynch says it’s debatable whether healthy people should be exposed to these risks. “There are still serious questions about the safety and effectiveness of this technology,” she says, “even for people with life-threatening diseases.” “If you are a healthy person, the risk of harm is greater because it will have a greater impact on your life.”
But Leshko is adamant. “More than 120,000 humans die every day from age-related causes,” he wrote in an email. “It is unethical to create ‘ethical’ barriers around ‘healthy’ human (indeed, older human) trials.” Morgunov did not respond to a request for comment.
Some people want to take the risk anyway. In his video, biohacker influencer Asprey – who has publicly stated that he is “going to live to 180” – described VEGF as a “longevity compound”, and Eterna CEO Khan, who administered the treatment, described it as “the ultimate upgrade”. Neither Asprey nor Khan Clinic responded to requests for comment.
Michael Gusmano, a health policy professor at Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, worries that this messaging could give trial participants unrealistic expectations about how they might benefit. “When you have any kind of celebrity online influencer promoting something for which there is relatively little scientific evidence, there is a much greater potential for medical misconception,” he says. In fact, he says, “the only thing you can guarantee is that (volunteers) will contribute to our knowledge of how this intervention works.”
“I certainly would not recommend that anyone I know participate in a trial like this,” says Gusmano.
a gender project
Studying muscles is only the first step. The Unlimited Bio team also hopes to test VEGF therapy for alopecia and erectile dysfunction. Leshko points to research in mice that links higher VEGF levels to larger, denser hair follicles. They hope to test a series of VEGF therapy injections into the scalps of volunteers. Morgunov, who is largely bald, has already begun self-experimenting with this approach.
After this, erectile dysfunction can be tested. “We think it has a lot of potential because injecting gene therapy into the penis sounds exciting,” says Leshko. A protocol for that trial has not yet been finalized, but he estimates it will involve “five to 10” injections.
Ylä-Herttuala is not optimistic about either outlook. He says that hair growth is largely hormonal. and injecting Anything There is a risk of damage to the penis by penetrating it (although Leshko points this out). a similar approach Was taken over by another company about 20 years ago). Ylä-Herttuala says that injecting VEGF gene therapy into the penis may also risk inflammation there.
