Longevity & AgingPartial Epigenetic Reprogramming Shows Early Promise in First Human Glaucoma Trial
Epigenetic reprogramming, a strategy aimed at resetting aged cells to a more youthful state, has reached its first human test in glaucoma. Life Biosciences released interim Phase 1 results for ER-100, a gene therapy that delivers three reprogramming factors (OCT4, SOX2 and KLF4, known as OSK) into the eye with a single injection. The factors are switched on by daily doxycycline pills for 56 days. In three adults with open-angle glaucoma, the lowest dose was well tolerated through Day 56, with no serious adverse events. The company reports that two of the three patients showed improved visual field test results. The safety monitoring board has cleared the trial to move to a higher dose. The numbers are tiny, the study is open-label, and the efficacy data come from the company rather than a peer-reviewed paper, so the results are preliminary. Still, they are an early signal for a whole field of aging biology.
