‘To Age or Not to Age’ Explores Longevity Research

The discovery of the longevity gene may hold the keys to aging gracefully and extending life.

Every now and then, when plagued by a random ache or depleted energy, we feel like our warranty is up. Our body just doesn’t run as smoothly as it used to. To Age or Not to Age, a new documentary from Robert Kane Pappas, tackles this age-old (no pun intended) quandary of getting older. In the film, Pappas interviews molecular biologists about the recent discovery of SIRT1, a gene that controls longevity, and also covers what experiments in life extension of yeast, worms and mice might mean for humans’ potential lifespan.

The filmmaker decided to explore the subject after reading an article about caloric restriction, a regimen that research has shown may slow aging. (To read more about caloric restriction, check out “The Skinny on Caloric Restriction” in VIVmag’s July/August 2009 issue and the recently updated The Longevity Diet (Da Capo, 2010) by Brian M. Delaney and Lisa Walford.) Pappas also drew inspiration from an interview with David Sinclair, Ph.D., director of the Paul F. Glenn Laboratories for the Biological Mechanisms of Aging at Harvard Medical School, who takes resveratrol after discovering it may produce the same anti-aging benefits as caloric restriction. (Yes, it’s the same compound found in red wine, but according to the film, you’d have to drink 100 bottles per day for the same effects.)

Sinclair and Christoph Westphal, Ph.D, are interviewed about their company Sirtris Pharmaceuticals (since sold to GlaxoSmithKline), which is working on activation of the SIRT1 enzyme to combat age-related disease. Also chiming in is Aubrey de Grey, Ph.D., an outsider and the chief science officer of Strategies for Engineered Negligible Senescence (SENS), who asserts that lifespans will soon be extended to 1,000 years or more.

Tom Kirkwood, Ph.D., director of Institute for Ageing and Health at Newcastle University in the U.K., notes, “A lot of people think we’re biologically programmed to die, but the truth is that we’re biologically programmed for survival.” And Cynthia Kenyon, Ph.D., director of UCSF Hillblom Center for the Biology of Aging, puts the discovery of the longevity gene on par with that of DNA.

While the film relies heavily on interviews with the scientists, it’s also peppered with interviews and opinions from twentysomethings up to Madelyn Lynne, a 95-year-old who said she wants “to die on the dance floor.” Some of the ethical implications also are addressed, in serious and lighthearted ways, the latter with a clip from Dr. Jeckyll and Mr. Hyde.

To Age or Not to Age currently is being shown at the Village East Cinema in New York City. The film also is slated to open in Boston and Washington, D.C., and to be released on DVD at future dates. What do you think — could humans be on the verge of routinely living above the age of 100? Or is this science too close to science fiction?

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