PROSPR (Proactive Solutions for Prolonging Resilience) by ARPA-H: status and timeline

PROSPR (Proactive Solutions for Prolonging Resilience)

US government's first initiative targeting aging as treatable. Seven teams test rapamycin, SGLT2i, semaglutide to establish regulatory pathways for aging interventions.

PilotStage 3 of 5

Seven teams conduct phase 3 trials of repurposed drugs (2026-2031); establish FDA pathways.

Updated 24 Feb 2026Checked 10 Oct0 updates this week

Milestones

Next · Phase 3 clinical trials begin enrollment

ARPA-H established by Congress and signed into law15 Mar 2022Complete.
PROSPR program announced with $144M funding24 Feb 2026Complete.
Phase 3 clinical trials begin enrollmentTarget Q1 2026Current milestone.
Early biomarker readouts and interim analysesTarget 2027Not yet reached.
Regulatory guidance document publishedTarget 2029Not yet reached.
Final trial results and FDA pathway recommendationsTarget 2031Not yet reached.

Most important updates

Upcoming

Q1 2026Phase 3 clinical trials begin enrollment (next)
2027Early biomarker readouts and interim analyses
2029Regulatory guidance document published
2031Final trial results and FDA pathway recommendations

Current obstacles

FDA pathways don't existAging is not recognized as a treatable disease. PROSPR must establish novel regulatory pathways.
Biomarkers predict distant benefit3-5 year trials with biomarkers must predict 10+ year gains. Extrapolation is uncertain.
Coordinate seven teamsEach team has different endpoints and protocols. Integrating results for guidance is complex.

Physics limits

Biomarkers are not the same as functionA change in an epigenetic clock or a blood protein does not necessarily mean a person feels better or lives longer. Biomarkers are proxies; they can be wrong.
Repurposed drugs may not be optimalRapamycin, SGLT2i and semaglutide were designed for other indications. Their doses and formulations for aging may differ from optimal, limiting observed effects compared to purpose-built drugs.
Results may not generalize across populationsAging varies by genetics, sex, ancestry and environment. A drug that works in one population may not work in another, limiting broad conclusions.

How it works

3 parts

Drug selection

Repurpose FDA-approved drugs

Skip 10+ year drug development. Use rapamycin, SGLT2i, semaglutide tested for aging in animals.

Biomarker discovery

Early actionable aging biomarkers

Epigenetic age, proteomics, metabolomics respond quickly. Trials deliver results in 3-5 years.

FDA pathway

Establish regulatory precedent

Work with FDA to define aging as a medical condition, lowering barriers for future drugs.

Spec sheet

Spec	PROSPR (Proactive Solutions for Prolonging Resilience)
Total PROSPR funding	$144 million^R (reported)
Funding period	5 years^R (reported)
Research teams funded	7 teams^R (reported)
Largest individual award (VITAL-H)	$38 million^R (reported)
Funding announcement date	February 24, 2026^R (reported)

^R reported by the company

Papers & demos

2 items

Feb 2026demo
PROSPR funding announced to seven research teams (opens arpa-h.gov)US government's first program directly targeting aging; $144M over 5 years for clinical trials.
15 Mar 2022talk
ARPA-H established by Congress (opens arpa-h.gov)Creation of US government agency tasked with high-risk, high-reward biomedical research; housed in NIH.

Update log

2 updates

Tue 24 Feb

Major: VITAL-H trial begins at University of Texas Health Science Center, largest PROSPR award at $38MPressResearch
Major: ARPA-H awards $144M to seven teams for PROSPR aging research programPressFunding

About ARPA-H

The team behind PROSPR (Proactive Solutions for Prolonging Resilience)

ARPA-H

PROSPR aging program, $144M, US government research

ARPA-H is a US government agency for transformative biomedical research. PROSPR is the first federal program targeting aging as treatable, funding seven teams with $144M over five years.

ARPA-H established by Congress March 2022, housed in NIH; director reports to HHS Secretary.
PROSPR funds 7 teams to test rapamycin, SGLT2i, semaglutide and other drugs for aging.
Establishes FDA pathways for aging as a medical condition, removing a key geroscience bottleneck.

arpa-h.gov (opens arpa-h.gov)Company profile →

Founded: 20224 yrs
Headquarters: United States
Status: Public
Valuation: public
Works in: LongevityInstitutes & funders
Coverage: 1 program · 3 updateslatest 24 Feb 2026checked 10 Oct
Partners: National Institutes of Health (NIH) (opens nih.gov)University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio (opens uthscsa.edu)
People: Alicia Jackson (opens arpa-h.gov)Director

Spec

PROSPR (Proactive Solutions for Prolonging Resilience)

Total PROSPR funding

$144 million^R (reported)

Funding period

5 years^R (reported)

Research teams funded

7 teams^R (reported)

Largest individual award (VITAL-H)

$38 million^R (reported)

Funding announcement date

February 24, 2026^R (reported)