Young Blood Transfusions To Reverse Aging? Sign Me Up!

A new startup provides blood transfusions from young people to improve cognitive and neurological functions.

Jun 15th, 2017

Blood transfusions can reverse aging. / Image: HBO

Blood transfusions can reverse aging. / Image: HBO

It sounds like science fiction, but a June 9^th Newsweek article discussed the new trend of using blood from the young to revitalize the old. The concept, which was parodied recently on an episode of Silicon Valley, actually has some compelling studies behind it. In 2014, Stanford University researchers infused young blood plasma in mice to rejuvenate synaptic plasticity and improve cognitive function.

Jesse Karmazin, a physician and graduate of Stanford’s medical school, believes this concept can work on humans. His company, Ambrosia LLC, charges adults (35+) $8,000 to be injected with blood plasma from people aged 16-25 as part of a clinical trial to test the anti-aging benefits of plasma transfusions. The article includes an interesting Q&A segment with Karmazin that is worth the read.

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