Cycloastragenol is a

triterpenoid Triterpenes are a class of chemical compounds composed of three terpene units with the molecular formula C30H48; they may also be thought of as consisting of six isoprene units. Animals, plants and fungi all produce triterpenes, including squal ...

isolated from various legume species in the genus ''

Astragalus ''Astragalus'' is a large genus of over 3,000 species of herbs and small shrubs, belonging to the legume family Fabaceae and the subfamily Faboideae. It is the largest genus of plants in terms of described species. The genus is native to tempe ...

'' that is purported to have

telomerase Telomerase, also called terminal transferase, is a ribonucleoprotein that adds a species-dependent telomere repeat sequence to the 3' end of telomeres. A telomere is a region of repetitive sequences at each end of the chromosomes of most euka ...

activation activity. A preliminary ''

in vitro ''In vitro'' (meaning in glass, or ''in the glass'') studies are performed with microorganisms, cells, or biological molecules outside their normal biological context. Colloquially called " test-tube experiments", these studies in biology ...

'' study on human CD4 and

CD8 CD8 (cluster of differentiation 8) is a transmembrane glycoprotein that serves as a co-receptor for the T-cell receptor (TCR). Along with the TCR, the CD8 co-receptor plays a role in T cell signaling and aiding with cytotoxic T cell-antigen int ...

T cell A T cell is a type of lymphocyte. T cells are one of the important white blood cells of the immune system and play a central role in the adaptive immune response. T cells can be distinguished from other lymphocytes by the presence of a T-cell r ...

s found that cycloastragenol may moderately increase telomerase activity and inhibit the onset of cellular senescence.

History

Cycloastragenol was patented by Geron Corporation and sold to Telomerase Activation Sciences in early 2013 who are developing it as a product named TA-65. Bill Andrews of

Sierra Sciences Sierra Sciences, LLC is a biotechnology company founded by William H. Andrews, former director of molecular biology at Geron Corporation. Andrews founded Sierra Sciences in 1999 in Reno, Nevada with the goal of preventing and/or reversing cellu ...

has done testing on the anti- aging aspect of TA-65;, as well as Maria Blasco in the journal ''

Aging Cell ''Aging Cell'' is a peer-reviewed open access scientific journal and an official journal of the Anatomical Society. It is published on their behalf by John Wiley & Sons. It was established in 2002 and the editors-in-chief are Peter Adams ( Sanford ...

'', finding no increase in murine median or mean lifespan but some physiological anti-aging effects without augmenting cancer incidence. TA sciences was served with a consent order by the Federal Trade Commission for deceptive advertising implying that TA-65 can reverse aging and repair DNA damage.

Potential pharmacology

Its mode of action is purported to be the activation of the human enzyme

. Cycloastragenol intake improved health span but not lifespan in normal mice. As part of a study sponsored by RevGenetics, the cycloastragenol-based product TA-65 was tested by UCLA scientist Rita B. Effros and RevGenetics scientist Hector F. Valenzuela. The small study (using T-cells taken from 6 participants) found that TA-65 activated telomerase in cultured cells in all samples, while another ''Astragalus'' extract did not. The clinical significance of this work is uncertain. Toxicity testing is limited and safety for the human consumer has not been adequately demonstrated. TA-65 was shown to improve biological markers associated with human health span through the lengthening of short telomeres and rescuing of old cells, although the significance of these findings in actual life expectancy is unknown. Publications in high-impact peer-reviewed journals are lacking however, and much of the online documentation supporting its use is sponsored by its manufacturers. As disordered telomerase function is a feature of almost all cancers, there is an unproven, but theoretical risk of oncogene-mediated cancer promotion through the use of telomerase activators.

References

{{reflist Dietary supplements Triterpenes Cyclopropanes Tetrahydrofurans