Rapamycin & mTOR
Emerging evidenceA randomized controlled trial to establish effects of short-term rapamycin treatment in 24 middle-aged companion dogs
Urfer S.R., Kaeberlein T.L., Mailheau S. et al. · GeroScience, 2017
- Species
- Dogs
- Design
- Randomized controlled trial
- Sample
- 24 middle-aged companion dogs
What it found
Ten weeks of low-dose rapamycin in healthy middle-aged dogs was well tolerated, with no significant increase in adverse events over placebo. Echocardiography showed improvements in age-associated measures of heart function.
Why it matters
The first randomized, placebo-controlled rapamycin trial in pet dogs living in real homes — not laboratory animals. It is the safety foundation the entire veterinary rapamycin field is built on, and the reason larger trials were allowed to proceed.
How much weight this carries
Human trials exist but are mixed or early-stage; the mechanism is well characterized.
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More on rapamycin & mtor
- Rapamycin fed late in life extends lifespan in genetically heterogeneous mice
Nature, 2009
- Transient rapamycin treatment can increase lifespan and healthspan in middle-aged mice
eLife, 2016
- TRIAD — Test of Rapamycin In Aging Dogs
Dog Aging Project, 2024
- Safety and tolerability of delayed-release rapamycin in cats with subclinical hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (RAPACAT)
Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine, 2023
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