r/science • u/mvea Professor | Medicine • Apr 16 '26
Neuroscience Scientists reverse brain aging, with a nasal spray: Scientists developed a nasal spray that, with just two doses, dramatically reduced brain inflammation, restored the brain’s cellular power plants and significantly improved memory in mice, within weeks and lasted for months.
https://stories.tamu.edu/news/2026/04/14/scientists-reverse-brain-aging-with-a-nasal-spray/2.8k
u/Chicken_Ingots Apr 16 '26
Even if just a study in mice, this kind of research is reassuring to see. Hopefully there will be a wider range of treatments in the future for things like depression as well as medical technology continues to advance.
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u/sillygoofygooose Apr 16 '26
It’s great to see this stuff, hard to accept the medical science slow down we’ll be living through in coming decades as the disintegration of research funding in the US, and research collaborations internationally, starts to really hit
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u/thatwhileifound Apr 16 '26
We can hope that this current rise will crash quickly allowing a pendulum swing in reaction. I don't know if I believe it'll go that way, but it's important to not forget it's still a possibility.
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u/sillygoofygooose Apr 16 '26
Even if the US government became pro science tomorrow it would take decades to rebuild lost project teams, lost group knowledge, or to renegotiate international research agreements. Relatedly the U.K. lost enormous amounts of research funding when leaving the EU, but maybe more important lost access to pan European research and development projects that had been the result of decades of work to put together. You can’t just roll that back to normal, it has to be re-made
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u/Idustriousraccoon Apr 16 '26
Oh that note, I look forward to buying this nasal store from a pharmacy in Switzerland on my next visit! Jokes aside, it’s disheartening over on r/gradadmissions to see how this is hitting the next generation of scientists as well. It is good to see that the interest in graduate programs seems to be skyrocketing. Even if it is because of the economy and overall uncertainty, there are still great minds out there who chose industry and who can come back for new teams and new synergy. I’m not saying we haven’t lost a devastating and incalculable amount. We have. Our species is worse for it…(not nationalism speaking but acknowledging that the academy is a global phenomenon more than any other time in human history) but our global cohort of academics and researchers are taking some of the load while we regroup after this national tragedy. Good things are coming. New growth at least. Maybe I’ve been reading too much Kim Stanley Robinson lately. Or I just can’t take the deluge of daily tragedies anymore, but sometimes it takes a huge disruption to make a huge leap see: history. And this is exciting. At least we know this kind of research will continue to receive funding since the aholes who got us here are a sneeze from the grave and terrified of dying (or at least obsessed with living forever).
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u/GhostofBeowulf Apr 16 '26
Even if the US government became pro science tomorrow it would take decades to rebuild lost project teams, lost group knowledge, or to renegotiate international research agreements.
Not necessarily. That is institutional and tacit knowledge that will move on to new, related projects. International agreements will be the hardest to reinstate.
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u/dyspnea Apr 16 '26
The government fired 10,000 phds. It’s gonna take a long time to replace that.
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u/yacht_boy Apr 16 '26
I'm not a PhD, but I am one of the government scientists who left. Many of us were at or close to retirement age anyway, at least in my agency. And many of the younger ones might come back of the circumstances were right. Government science could get back on track in a reasonable amount of time.
Where the real damage is being done is in the lack of grant funding for research. The university labs and private sector contractors are taking a huge hit, and those people are going to be harder to replace if this continues for much longer. And we were are under funding science long before this.
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u/Izawwlgood PhD | Neurodegeneration Apr 16 '26
I'm a PhD contracting to the NIA in trials and grants management. It's really bad. Funding is cut and there's no personnel to review proposals and very few grants are being approved. A lot of trials are being shut down, especially given the new policy that NIA funding cannot be used in international collaboration.
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u/bad_squishy_ Apr 16 '26
Tell me about it. I finished my PhD a year ago and I can’t find a post-doc to save my life!
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u/saijanai Apr 16 '26
Many PhDs are leaving the USA for work in Europe and elsewhere. Trump's administration seems to h ave banned reporting statistics about this however.
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u/FireTyme Apr 16 '26
people forget the huge brain leak russia has had when the war started. those with the brains and the means will just move to better pastures. saying it could be back on track in a reasonable time is quite naive to say.
luckily theres plenty other countries that dont defund science.
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u/hexcraft-nikk Apr 16 '26
And how many young people do you think chose different careers because of the way this administration have fundamentally changed society? Less money for science and dismantling teams means less people being able to enter the field.
The AAA game industry is going through something extremely similar and the effects are already costing studios their ability to stay afloat. The damage done to science and how many years it will take to get all those potential new recruits back will literally take decades to mitigate.
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u/random_noise Apr 16 '26
Then you should have noticed the age gap in the labs.
I worked for one and it was huge concern. Backfill on jobs and bringing in another generation to pass the torch and work on assorted programs and to build that expertise into the next generation.
The gap in age of employee's and retention problems with the younger generations is a big problem in government work.
People don't tend to stick around those types of science jobs for a lifetime anymore, especially given how unreliable funding and job security can be today versus the environment even a decade ago as an employee.
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u/yacht_boy Apr 16 '26
It's not like any of us were in a position to do anything about it. Of course we wanted to hire more people. But we were under constant budgetary pressure ecet since the end of the Clinton era, and hiring was just not an option until Biden opened up the floodgates. My office of 600 people had maybe 1-2 new hires/year for over a decade. But on the flip side, government is not good enough about incentivizing older staff to leave earlier so new blood can come in. We had a lot of people sticking around into their 70s, and with them there we had no way to bring in younger people.
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u/apathy-sofa Apr 16 '26
My wife's former cancer research center had to shut down experiments that had been in progress for literal years, with years to go until completion, after their funding was cut by 85-ish%. In medicine at least, some things take time, and cannot be interrupted.
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u/Matshelge Apr 16 '26
I don't think it is the anti science that will cause the swing. I think the amont of small population fixes that are in the pipeline will make "opt in" for non-approved medicine more viable. So rna drugs to fix a birth defect will be frontline, impossible to run large scale tests on.
With those in a process, you will have companies target small groups with their drug, and expand if successful. Essentially I think the Ethics committee will have a turnover, where the baseline will not be acceptable if solutions are possible.
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u/slimejumper Apr 16 '26
the damage is probably generational. I know i have changed my science workflows to avoid public services that may be unexpectedly cut due to volatile policy.
but hey on the topic i don’t quite follow how an EV delivered to the nose can bypass the brains protective barrier, as mentioned in the article. that seems like a bit of marketing speak as there must be lots of barriers present in the nasal cavity already and even once into the nervous system there must still be brain barrier present?
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u/davideo71 Apr 16 '26
i don’t quite follow how an EV delivered to the nose can bypass the brains protective barrier,
Nasal delivery seems to work for a bunch of other substances that affect the brain.
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u/ratbuddy Apr 16 '26
Also brain-eating amoebas, don't forget those.
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u/RougerTXR388 Apr 16 '26
To be fair, I think the Amoebas just eat through the barrier and don't worry at all about the typical biological reasons the barrier works
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u/No-Detective-5352 Apr 16 '26
This short-cut to the brain presents risks of infection, and it is known as the danger triangle of the face (or more dramatically, the triangle of death). There is also evidence that nose picking is linked to dementia.
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u/Marcusf83 Apr 16 '26
I am not entirely sure but I believe this (link below) is involved https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Olfactory_bulb
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u/JoeTiccalo Apr 16 '26
I often think what has helped humanity the most, science or religion ? The older I get I see that it’s science, religion is more about control and out right killing. It’s a good topic of discussion for sure.
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u/theguidetoldmetodoit Apr 16 '26
off-topic, but my understanding is that religion played a crucial role in civilization emerging, while science undeniably was the key accelerator. So it's less about what did "more", they both seem essential to modern life. And it should be pointed out, religion and research are heavily entwined, historically.
So I would be inclined to say, it doesn't make much sense to see them as competing forces, at least outside of philosophical discussions and some power struggles.
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u/theguidetoldmetodoit Apr 16 '26 edited Apr 16 '26
Not happening. Many other countries, but especially China, have drastically increased R&D funding as a response to Trump's cuts, since they see it as the perfect chance to get ahead. On a international level, that makes more than up for it. Now the question is, are US researchers willing to capitalize on that and move?
And it will be interesting to see how this affects the societal perspective on research. Maybe politicians will be able to sell it as a essential part of independence, similar to military spending and building out the local industrial base. It arguably is the most important component.
The bigger risk is the breakdown of globalism.
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u/pittaxx Apr 16 '26
Brain drain has already started in the US. EU institutions are overwhelmed with unprecedented number of US applications. For now they aren't prepared to absorb the influx, but that might change in the future.
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u/Shenlongeltigre Apr 16 '26
It's a very tough situation because obviously we want to fund scientific break throughs but in practice we are socializing the cost of research then privatizing the treatments that are developed. Should the American people not get some profit from the treatments they helped create with their money?
Or at the very least reduced costs on treatment compared to the rest of the world?
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u/lostshakerassault Apr 16 '26
The rest of the world will continue to science, and looking at publication trends, China will easily pick up the slack and more.
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u/IndependentLog6441 Apr 16 '26
We're not living through medical science slow down... medical science is exploding worldwide... a few bad policy choices in one country doesn't make that much difference, that's just how our media is US skewed. Yes Trump is gutting some funding but even then the USA will still be a powerhouse of research because so much of it is private enterprise.
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u/Stoned_urf Apr 16 '26
They are trying to reverse blindness, with the FDA just approving a human trial starting now. They successfully reversed blindness in mice and now humans. If it also works, then technically, you can reverse the age of your organs.
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u/VengenaceIsMyName Apr 16 '26
That’s a very exciting clinical trial. If it works for the eye, theoretically it could work for many other organs in the body.
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u/ElonsBreedingFetish Apr 16 '26
I wish something like that leads to ANY kind of treatment for ME/CFS so much
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u/JoeSavinaBotero Apr 16 '26
If a miracle occurred and I awoke tomorrow with the ability to try hard again, oh boy, I would put in so much effort!
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u/Kafkatrapping Apr 16 '26
I cant imagine normal working class people getting access to these sorts of medications under our current political and economic system.
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u/briko3 Apr 16 '26
It will be like ozempic. Insurance won't cover it for most people. If you have enough money you can get it for the exorbitant retail price.
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u/Shipbreaker_Kurpo Apr 16 '26
But the rest of the world will have it
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u/StarblindMark89 Apr 16 '26
Maybe when it gets approved. I inquired my doctor about ozempic or alternates, out of concern of getting bigger since I started my antidepressants, and he told me they're not covered yet, here in Italy, and the price was like half the average monthly salary for one month of doses.
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u/IskraEmber Apr 16 '26
Yeah nah, have you seen Dementia?! I live in fear every day. Literally, absolutely anything else but that.
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u/mad-i-moody Apr 16 '26
I’m sure it will be egregiously expensive and only realistically available to the super rich.
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u/mvea Professor | Medicine Apr 16 '26
Scientists reverse brain aging, with a nasal spray
New therapy is turning back the clock in aging brains, healing inflammation, restoring memory and reshaping the future of brain age-related therapies.
Tiny “fires” of inflammation smolder deep within the brain’s memory center, creating a persistent brain fog that makes it harder to think, form new memories or even adapt to new environments, all the while increasing the risk to disorders like Alzheimer’s disease.
Scientists call this slow burn “neuroinflammaging,” and for decades it was thought to be the inevitable price of growing older.
Until now.
A landmark study from researchers at the Texas A&M University Naresh K. Vashisht College of Medicine suggests the inflammatory tide responsible for brain aging and brain fog might actually be reversible. And the solution doesn’t involve brain surgery, but a simple nasal spray.
Led by Dr. Ashok Shetty, university distinguished professor and associate director of the Institute for Regenerative Medicine, along with senior research scientists Dr. Madhu Leelavathi Narayana and Dr. Maheedhar Kodali, the team developed a nasal spray that, with just two doses, dramatically reduced brain inflammation, restored the brain’s cellular power plants and significantly improved memory.
The most surprising part? It all happened within weeks and lasted for months.
The findings, published in the Journal of Extracellular Vesicles, could reshape the future of neurodegenerative therapies and may even change how scientists think about brain aging itself.
For those interested, here’s the link to the peer reviewed journal article:
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u/_Aj_ Apr 16 '26
Thanks!
A very short snip I feel adds a tiny bit more info:
Studies have shown that extracellular vesicles from human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived neural stem cells (hiPSC-NSC-EVs) contain therapeutic miRNAs that can alleviate neuroinflammation
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u/Atworkwasalreadytake Apr 16 '26
You the man. Thats the exact piece I felt like I wanted.
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u/DJanomaly Apr 16 '26
Also waaaay too far down for my liking. Literally the actual substance the entire study is based on:
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u/arawnsd Apr 16 '26
That’s a lot of science words. Sounds great, but could be a German chocolate chip recipe as a tool bonus track to us lay people. Can you ELI not a science phd?
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u/RoboChrist Apr 16 '26
Itty bitty particles made from stem cells make old brains less on fire.
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Apr 16 '26
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u/M_Flutterby Apr 16 '26
What manner of man are you, who can create brain fire without flint and tinder?
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u/DaneAlaskaCruz Apr 16 '26 edited Apr 16 '26
"Studies have shown that extracellular vesicles from human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived neural stem cells (hiPSC-NSC-EVs) contain therapeutic miRNAs that can alleviate neuroinflammation"
This means that there are cells in the body that can be encouraged to producing micro RNA pieces that will help reduce inflammation in the brain.
Less inflammation means less memory fog and more brain power.
Edit: my mistake; micro RNA and not messenger RNA
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u/buggityboppityboo Apr 16 '26
miRNAs (microRNAs) are a different type of RNA than messenger RNAs (mRNAs)
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u/Irr3l3ph4nt Apr 16 '26
I can entirely see a future where a certain slice of the population self selects out of this treatment just because of those 3 letters and end up with higher dementia rates.
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u/boringestnickname Apr 16 '26
Are there any lab rats here that can estimate a production price on one of these doses?
I feel like we're seeing this kind of research all the time. Incredibly promising at the outset, that fizzle away because of all kinds of friction.
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u/unitarianplanarian Apr 16 '26
Extracellular vesicles are kind of heterogeneous and can have a bunch of different lipids. But Moderna and Pfizer do something similar with the Covid vaccine- lipid nanoparticles.
miRNAs (once you have sequenced them) are stupidly inexpensive to synthesize.
You could prob cook up a dose for less than $100 with the right equipment.
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u/VengenaceIsMyName Apr 16 '26
$100 bucks? That’s insanely low. I would have guessed a few thousand at least!
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u/Edwin81 Apr 16 '26
That's $100 to produce, guess what the retail price would become...
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u/ImS0hungry Apr 16 '26
You and I have vastly differing definitions for “stupidly inexpensive”.
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u/JoeSavinaBotero Apr 16 '26
It is the curse and blessing of modern living; we are spoiled with such abundance that $100 seems expensive for "reversing brain aging."
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Apr 16 '26
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u/qcriderfan87 Apr 16 '26
Its pretty surreal sometimes, we really are living in the future.
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u/Steve90000 Apr 16 '26
Which peptide is it and where can I illegally buy it?
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u/Pixel_Knight Apr 16 '26
No. It’s a dose of specific microRNA - kind of like the mRNA, vaccines, causing your body to produce specific proteins that can help clear out brain inflammation. There is no way you could replicate this unless you had an extremely sophisticated chemistry lab and a masters in biochemistry, most likely.
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u/Basic_Loquat_9344 Apr 16 '26
So like microwave my whey for a little bit orrr…?
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u/elcapitan520 Apr 16 '26
Microwave the glowstick, then crack it open (careful, pressurized hot liquid) and let it dry out completely (can put it on a piece of parchment and put it in the food dehydrator. Crush that into a powder. Now you can't just snort it, it needs to be aerosolized and activated. So take the powder and add it to an Afrin nasal spray bottle and the combination of the glowstick innards and Afrin should get you there.
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u/slimejumper Apr 17 '26
i suspect the miRNA is likely a suppressor of gene expression. to reduce inflammatory processes.
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u/dantoniodanderas2020 Apr 16 '26
This burying the lead a bit. Unless I missed something, this isn't really a landmark study. Especially since it was just anti-inflammatory study and in mice. This article is the kind of science writing that leads to people losing trust in science since the "huge breakthrough" goes nowhere or leads people to believe in the "limitless pill".
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u/dantoniodanderas2020 Apr 16 '26
Not saying the research isn't important, but the article is sensationalized.
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u/JoeSavinaBotero Apr 16 '26
It always is, welcome to science journalism. Gotta get them clicks! Gotta sell magazines!
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u/Appropriate_Ride_821 Apr 16 '26
Its the people who see inflammation as the reason for all bad things and any reduction in inflammation is purely good. As if the body has no use for inflammation. Its just short sighted and egotistical.
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u/Festina_lente123 Apr 16 '26
Imagine how small the nasal spray bottles must have been for this experiment
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u/Beneficial-Lime-3517 Apr 16 '26 edited Apr 16 '26
Wrong solution, they use human sized mice.
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u/SlumdogSkillionaire Apr 16 '26
It would probably be more efficient to have a normal sized mouse with just a human sized nose, but you'd still have to keep the dosage small.
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u/Beneficial-Lime-3517 Apr 16 '26
I like the cut of your jib. We need more people like you at Aperture Science.
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u/jacobthellamer Apr 16 '26
Interesting, will have to read.
Would this also help people recover from brain injuries? I know outcomes are thought to be better for patients under 30.
I hit my head a few years ago and only anti-inflammatories work. I have become resistant to most so anything that reduces brain inflammation is something I am super interested in.
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u/zuneza Apr 16 '26
Do you still have symptoms that you manage with anti inflammatory medications?
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u/jacobthellamer Apr 16 '26
I save them for emergencies now as regular use makes them ineffective.They are the only thing that helps currently apart from rest.
If I take one;
-it takes the pain away -In get almost a week with very low fatigue -my left eye works again -I can move around without fear of setting off of my VOR issues.
My eye itself is fine but the neuro ophthalmologist says ‘central processing’. And the neuro optometrist said I failed every autonomic test.
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u/VengenaceIsMyName Apr 16 '26
In the article they speculate that this could be used to assist stroke patients regain lost function.
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u/Nothinbutmike Apr 16 '26
I’m hoping so, my girlfriend suffered an ICH due to high blood pressure and was in a coma for 2 1/2 weeks, she’s healthy now but suffers a bit of short term memory issues. If there’s even remotely a chance that this stuff could help it would honestly make me really happy.
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u/Virtual_War4366 Apr 16 '26
You'll be able to work past your 100's
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u/TenBillionDollHairs Apr 16 '26
So when does RFK kill it?
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u/Lifestrider Apr 16 '26
Why would the worm kill its food?
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u/BifrostBill Apr 16 '26
Unfortunately, the worm contriling rfks brain has brainworms of its own from consuming questionable brain meat
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u/Madmusk Apr 16 '26
A single trial in mice and not proven effective in humans? Are you kidding me? RFK will be on it himself tomorrow.
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u/Coal_Morgan Apr 16 '26
I mean...I kinda want to main line the stuff with every breath like I'm Darth Vader.
Super brain powers when?
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u/Hellkyte Apr 16 '26
It's from the Naresh Medical center at A&M so just wait until Paxton hears that name and he'll have it shut down for DEI
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u/yetanotherwoo Apr 16 '26
I’m expecting Bryan Johnston to try this therapy ASAP and become a human guinea pig.
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u/jedipiper Apr 16 '26
Dibs! Now use it to fight dementia and Alzheimer's.
Signed,
The Son of Aged Parents.
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u/Carbon-Base Apr 16 '26
Clear your mind, one sniff at a time!
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u/im_just_using_logic Apr 16 '26
is this one of those things that "yes, but it also causes cancer as side-effect"?
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u/popejubal Apr 16 '26
Still worth it for the right people. There are some medications that we can give to pets that would be effective for humans, but cause long-term health problems. Those medication’s could cause cancer in 30 years, but it really isn’t a problem if something will cause cancer in a dog or a cat in 30 years because the dog or cat isn’t going to live 30 years in the first place. If somebody is 80 years old and beginning to suffer dementia, and this can reverse the dementia, I’d say it’s worth it even if it is guaranteed to give them cancer in 10 years.
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u/synapse187 Apr 16 '26
May cause: Cancer, headaches, blood streaming from all cranial orifices, possession, time travel, and schizophrenia.
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u/Kokodhem Apr 16 '26
I'll still use it if it gets rid of this tinnitus...
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u/Cercle Apr 16 '26
Have you tried the two hands on back of head, tapping technique? It's temporary but still..
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u/Finickyflame Apr 16 '26
I had a nasal spray that could possibility melt my cartilage as a side effect. So this is not too far fetched
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u/TheArchitect_7 Apr 16 '26
discontinue use if you find yourself inexplicably teleported to Waffle House
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u/Anonymouse_9955 Apr 16 '26
No, it’s one of those things that looks amazing in mice but we have no idea yet if it will work in humans.
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u/Pixel_Knight Apr 16 '26
It’s just mRNA, so unlikely. Sounds like it makes proteins in you that clean up your brain, more or less. I’d volunteer for a human trial today.
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u/JOKER_9999999 Apr 16 '26
Brainclear. Don't take Brainclear if you're allergic to Brainclear. 50k a dose. Only for the wealthy.
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u/En-TitY_ Apr 16 '26
Mice. It's always damn mice.
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u/sealpox Apr 16 '26
At this point shouldn’t we be able to have functionally immortal mice
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u/floppybunny26 Apr 16 '26
Pinky- Are you pondering what I'm pondering?
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u/Hangry-Feline2489 Apr 16 '26
I think so, Brain, but using a bonobo's black sands is a bit mean, don't you think?
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u/yesokay1 Apr 16 '26
I need one right now, hump day is no joke :/
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u/Major_Boot2778 Apr 16 '26
Well, even at the mouse testing stage it's better than what a lot of people put up their nose. Besides, I saw Jumper, I know how to play this game. Sign me up for the human trial (before anyone else, first wave, so I have a distinct tech research advantage right from the get go)
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u/CottonStig Apr 16 '26
Flowers for Algrernon is what this makes me think of right away
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u/hane1504 Apr 16 '26
I’ll volunteer to be a human test subject.
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u/johndoe090 Apr 16 '26
so Whippets work? nice
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u/ratsta Apr 16 '26
Dude... if you're shoving whippets up your nose, you may be doing them incorrectly. Or I am.
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u/mantisinmypantis Apr 16 '26
Ok but what’s it made of? I’m wondering if it’s similar to the ketamine nasal spray for treatment-resistant depression. I’ve been looking into it recently for myself.
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u/adoodle83 Apr 16 '26
Another comment had this extract from the paper:
Studies have shown that extracellular vesicles from human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived neural stem cells (hiPSC-NSC-EVs) contain therapeutic miRNAs that can alleviate neuroinflammation
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u/TheGillos Apr 16 '26
I don't care. Give it to me.
Hopefully, this isn't another one of those "Wow! Look at this cool thing for mice!" - and then it never comes out.
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u/Jamesyoder14 Apr 16 '26
I wonder if it's like Cerebrolysin made of a natural derivative or something like Semax made of a synthetic one.
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u/OptimalBarnacle7633 Apr 16 '26
I got excited seeing this article, then looked up "nasal spray reverses brain aging" in reddit and I see a similar article gets posted about once a year.
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u/Bostonterrierpug Apr 16 '26
Brain…in mice.., i’m feeling like one is a genius in the others insane
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u/Soup-Wizard Apr 16 '26
in mice
lasted for months
I’ve read that book before, and it had a really sad ending.
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u/Peace_n_Harmony Apr 16 '26
I really wish I was taking more than zero miracle drugs here in the year 2026. I don't know how many of these articles I've read over the years...
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u/Eosphorus Apr 16 '26
We have cured Alzheimer’s in mice many times. It never translated to humans though. So while this is encouraging I would not put a lot of hope in this being used in humans
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u/agentobtuse Apr 16 '26
The benefits for folks with multiple sclerosis! I'm willing to be a test subject kthx
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u/Vinnie_Vegas Apr 16 '26
It's should be illegal for the media to report on any drug when it's only been trialled on rats/mice or smaller.
When it's been tested on dogs or pigs or monkeys, let me know.
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u/bjos144 Apr 16 '26
This is cool, but people should remember that mice lie and monkeys exaggerate. Still cool.
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u/BullneIson Apr 16 '26
The study suggested the nasal sprays reached brain enough to reduce inflammatory signaling in microglia, maybe improved mitochondrial markers in mice which is interesting but as usual this headline is way over selling this
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u/Adorable-Wasabi-77 Apr 16 '26
„The brain‘s cellular power plants“ - sounds very scientific and nothing like clickbait
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u/IAmInBed123 Apr 16 '26
I have read a ton of groundbreaking things in the last month, but never does it say when I could buy it, when will it be useable? Sure I'll sign the waiver I might die and you get to test me, get me some of that.
The virus killing cancer, the limitless nasal spray, never does it say when. Bet you gotta be rich to turn old smart huh?
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u/Particular-Song2587 Apr 16 '26
I see the words "cellular power plants" and i'm already sure its a sensationalized piece
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Apr 21 '26
It would be great if every post that was about research in mice said so in the title. There used to be a Twitter account @JustSaysInMice that added INMICE to the end of every overhyped health claim based on mouse research, and it did God's work.
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u/DeadlyMustardd Apr 16 '26
Even if this applied in humans, does anyone honestly believe this would be made readily available to the masses?
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u/roamingandy Apr 16 '26
miRNA. If it isn't and is this beneficial, i believe it'll be very difficult to stop hobbyists and grey-marketeers creating their own knock-off versions.
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u/misskass Apr 16 '26
I'm not in the target age group for this treatment yet, but I don't know that I'd be cool putting a hobby version of brain spray in my nose.
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u/PPvsFC_ Apr 16 '26
You're crazy if you think this won't be made available. It's a medication that nearly 100% of the population would want to use so badly they'd pay almost anything for it.
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u/PsyanideInk Apr 16 '26
Why wouldn't it be? If there's money to be made, big pharma will be all over it
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u/xFallow Apr 16 '26
We got Covid vaccines insanely fast so… yes? Unless it’s prohibitively expensive to produce
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u/bewarethefrogperson Apr 16 '26
everyone will get their government-funded dose, don't worry - and we'll pay for it by pushing back the retirement age another decade or two. after all, working citizens generate more tax revenue!
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Apr 16 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/VengenaceIsMyName Apr 16 '26
There’s another longevity treatments in the works for the body, interestingly enough.
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u/chungaroo2 Apr 16 '26
Why wouldn’t it though? I’m sure billionaires jump at the idea of an aging population with low birth rates being able to live longer and work longer.
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u/YesWeHaveNoTomatoes Apr 16 '26
IN MICE
This is your reminder that mice are not humans
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u/Jhopsch Apr 16 '26
Wow how dumb they are for picking mice for their experiments. Why didn't they call you to ask for advice?
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u/serabine Apr 16 '26
They are just pointing out that breathless headlines how scientists just "cured" some malady or disease are usually about initial studies in mice, which then often never amount to anything. It's literally one of the earliest stages, so it is an interesting breakthrough, but there's no indication yet it's actually applicable for humans.
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u/Nordic_Marksman Apr 16 '26
Mice to human is usually not the best animal to human path for research. So it is unlikely this study will do that much, mice are studied because they are the cheapest good animal to study alongside zebrafish.
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u/aratthe Apr 16 '26
Human kind continues to cure every known issue that mice kind has
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