Telluride Science, A Very Special Town Talk: “Can We Opt Out of Aging?”

19 Sep Telluride Science, A Very Special Town Talk: “Can We Opt Out of Aging?”

This coming week the 2024 Telluride Science Town Talks series continues with a very special fall edition. The uplifting program is titled “Can We Opt Out of Aging?” and features world-renowned scientist Dr. Greg Fahy.  At the Telluride Innovation Center (formerly The Depot).

Visit telluridescience.org to learn more about Telluride Science and the capital campaign to transform the historic Telluride Depot into the Telluride Science & Innovation Center. The venue is now the permanent home for Telluride Science and a global hub of inspired knowledge exchange and development where great minds get to solve great challenges.

The 2024 Telluride Science Town Talks series was presented by Alpine Bank with additional support from the Telluride Mountain Village Owner’s Association.

Go here for more about Telluride Science.

Go here for more on Town Talks.

And please scroll down to listen to a podcast on longevity featuring Dr. Fahy titled ” You Are Only As Young As Your Immune System.”

Scientists have returned to Telluride for a series of fall workshops which run through October. The gatherings cover topics including quantum computing, electronic conductors, and machine-learning.

The upcoming group convenes leaders in cryopreservation.

Workshop participant Dr. Greg Fahy is world-renowned as the originator of the first practical method of cryopreservation by vitrification. His work has been central to the success of current advancements in organ transplantation.

Fahy is also credited, along with William F. Rall, with the introduction of vitrification to reproductive biology, leading to the success of fertility treatments like IVF today.

Fahy is the Chief Scientific Officer of 21st Century Medicine.

His contributions to the field of cryobiology are undoubtedly legendary; however, his Town Talk will focus on his recent successes in the field of longevity.

The dictionary defines aging as “the process of growing old.” However, Harvard Medical School professor Dr. David Sinclair disagrees. He defines aging as a disease, a perspective that suggests what we have long considered inevitable can actually be cured.

Sinclair is joined in his belief by high profile names like Peter Thiel, founder of PayPal; Larry Ellison, chairman of software company Oracle; and Larry Page of Google’s Calico, a company entirely devoted to studying aging and developing interventions.

The dollars spent today in the longevity sector are jaw-dropping: according to online sources, over $60 billion to date on anti-aging initiatives. That number is projected to top $120 billion over the next 10 years.

Fascinated with aging since he was age 12, Fahy has always closely followed research related to the topic. A 1986 paper in the “Proceedings of the National Academy of Science” piqued his interest: researchers had shown that growth hormones regenerated the thymus of a rat.

The thymus is central to the human immune system. It is where some T-cells are educated to identify pathogens and abnormal cells – like cancer. Others work to identify the body’s own cells to prevent autoimmune reactions; still others act as regulating cells to suppress excessive responses.

The thymus is highly productive through puberty, when it begins the process of involution, meaning active cells are gradually replaced with fat. The collapse of the thymus and the associated weakening of the immune system inversely aligns with the incidence of cancer, cardiovascular disease, and overall risk of mortality.

The abrupt decline of the immune system after 65 leaves humans highly susceptible to pathogens. That is immensely impactful to longevity: 90% of all flu-related deaths happen to people over 65.

Intrigued by the possibilities, Fahy embarked on a self-experiment with the assistance of his personal physician. After experiencing positive results, he was able to attract financial backing to support the first human clinical trial designed to reverse aspects of aging.

In 2019, Fahy published his results from the trial, known as TRIIM or Thymus Regeneration, Immunorestoration, and Insulin Mitigation. The results were nothing short of astounding: clear epigenetic age improvements. Participants registered two-to-three year reductions in their biological ages, with kidney function improvement and darkening of hair as additional markers of change.

Since then, Fahy has replicated those results and broadened his scope. He and  bio-tech entrepreneur Bobby Brooke co-founded Intervene Immune and have pioneered a treatment regimen to combat age-related immune system decline. They are working with collaborating physicians on the TRIIM-X clinical trial.

In his Town Talk, Fahy will discuss his most recent findings and his expectations for the future of his treatment regimen.

Fahy’s 20-minute presentation is followed by a 20-minute conversation with George Lewis. The program concludes with an audience Q&A.

You Are Only As Young As Your Immune System with Dr. Greg Fahy