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In this episode of The Healthspan Collective, host Nicole Doran sits down with aging biologist Dr. Matt Kaeberlein at a longevity conference in Switzerland to explore one of the most compelling questions in modern medicine: can we target the biology of aging itself to extend both lifespan and healthspan?
Dr. Kaeberlein shares decades of research on rapamycin, an mTOR inhibitor originally discovered on Easter Island that has become one of the most reproducible interventions shown to extend lifespan in animals. The conversation explores how rapamycin interacts with nutrient sensing, autophagy, and chronic inflammation, and why targeting these biological pathways may influence many age related diseases at once.
Nicole and Dr. Kaeberlein also discuss the emerging field of healthspan medicine and how his company Optispan is working to translate aging science into real clinical practice. They explore the Dog Aging Project, a large scale study testing rapamycin in companion dogs, as well as human evidence related to vaccine response, Alzheimer’s risk, and post viral conditions. This episode offers a grounded look at the science behind longevity interventions and what responsible progress in aging research actually looks like.
What We Cover:
🧬 Why targeting the biology of aging may prevent multiple diseases at once
💊 How rapamycin works and why it has become one of the most studied longevity interventions
🔬 The role of mTOR, nutrient sensing, and autophagy in aging biology
🐕 The Dog Aging Project and what studying companion dogs can teach us about human longevity
🧠 Early human research related to Alzheimer’s risk and immune function
🏥 The emerging field of healthspan medicine
📊 How Optispan is building longevity focused diagnostics and clinical care
⚖️ The challenges of translating longevity science into real world medicine
🧪 Metformin, SGLT2 inhibitors, and other compounds being explored in aging research
🌿 Lifestyle factors that still matter most for long term healthspan
Chapters:
00:00 Slowing Aging and the Dog Aging Project
03:07 Healthspan vs Lifespan
08:20 Compression of Morbidity and the Future of Medicine
15:50 Building Healthspan Medicine with Optispan
34:18 Rapamycin and the Biology of Aging
37:10 mTOR, Autophagy, and Longevity Pathways
42:51 What Human Data Actually Shows
47:11 Alzheimer’s Risk and Emerging Signals
56:19 The Dog Aging Project Trial
01:15:09 The Most Important Levers for Healthspan
