Nir Barzilai

Director, Institute for Geroscience, Albert Einstein College of Medicine · Author, Age Later · Leader of the Targeting Aging with Metformin (TAME) trial

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Most organizations treat aging as a fixed cost: rising claims, chronic disease, decline. Nir Barzilai's research says aging itself has biological drivers that can be measured and targeted, extending the years people stay healthy, capable and productive.

Health & Life Sciences Longevity

Bronx, United States

Videos

Watch Nir in Action

Ageing is a treatable disease | Nir Bazilai | TEDxBeaconStreetSalon

Bio

About Nir Barzilai

Why do some people reach 100 having spent barely any of their lives sick? Nir Barzilai, M.D. has built his career on that question. Barzilai has studied families of centenarians. Those studies have uncovered genetic variants that appear to slow the aging process and have been translated into FDA-approved drugs. His centenarians do not just live longer; they delay the onset of age-related diseases by 20 to 30 years and spend relatively little time ill at the end of life. His stated goal, the title of his talks and of a 2025 TIME profile, is to help people die young at a very old age.

His central insight is that aging itself has biological drivers that can be studied, measured and targeted, so that diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancer, dementia and frailty need not be fought one disease at a time. Through the American Federation for Aging Research, he co-leads FAST, an ARPA-H-supported biomarker initiative, and the Super Agers initiative. He is president and co-founder of the Academy of Geroscience.

Topics

Nir's Keynote Topics

Maximize the years we spend in good health, rather than managing chronic diseases. My research spans from cells to countries, but I will address my studies on families of over 800 centenarians—individuals who have reached 100 years of age—that have uncovered genetic variants that appear to slow the aging process and have been translated into FDA-approved drugs. Importantly, these individuals not only achieve exceptional longevity but also experience a significant delay (by 20–30 years) in the onset of age-related diseases compared to the general population. Furthermore, they exhibit a pronounced contraction of morbidity, spending relatively little time with illness at the end of life. These observations underscore the potential for interventions that extend healthspan and longevity, offering society (countries) a substantial “longevity dividend” by reducing healthcare costs and improving quality of life. At any age, healthspan and longevity can be achieved by maximizing or optimizing e

Research & Writing