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REPROGRAM protocol published: does three weeks of metformin, fisetin or spermidine cut senescent cells in over-70s?
Wellcome LeapDynamic Resilience
The full design of the REPROGRAM trial appeared in PLOS One. It asks whether a three-week course of one of three drugs lowers the number of senescent (worn-out, inflammation-spreading) cells in fat tissue. Other measures cover inflammation, immune aging, epigenetic age, DNA damage and gut microbes; there is no placebo group.
- 60 adults aged 70+, 30 women and 30 men
- Arms: metformin 1500 mg, fisetin 100 mg, spermidine 15 mg
- Primary readout: senescent cells in fat biopsies
- Recruitment began September 2025; results expected around October 2026
- Funded by the Wellcome Leap Dynamic Resilience award, co-funded by Temasek Trust