High Blood Pressure Medication Shown To Slow Aging and Extend Lifespan - SciTechDaily

A study recently published in the journal Aging Cell found that administering rilmenidine, a medication used to treat hypertension, to animals at both young and older ages increases lifespan and enhances overall health markers, similar to the effects of caloric restriction.

New research findings, published on January 20 in the journal Aging Cell, show that animals treated with rilmenidine, currently used to treat hypertension (high blood pressure), at young and older ages increase lifespan and improve health markers, mimicking the effects of caloric restriction.

Unlike other drugs previously studied for this purpose by the researchers, the widely-prescribed, oral antihypertensive rilmenidine has the potential for future translatability to humans as side effects are rare and non-severe.

To date, a caloric restriction diet has been considered the most robust anti-aging intervention, promoting longevity across species.

Repurposing drugs capable of extending lifespan and healthspan has a huge untapped potential in translational geroscience.

Reference: “Rilmenidine extends lifespan and healthspan in Caenorhabditis elegans via a nischarin I1-imidazoline receptor” by Dominic F. Bennett, Anita Goyala, Cyril Statzer, Charles W. Beckett, Alexander Tyshkovskiy, Vadim N. Gladyshev, Collin Y. Ewald and João Pedro de Magalhães, 20 January 2023, Aging Cell.