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Retro Biosciences Announces Start of Clinical Trials in Australia With Innovative Pill RTR242, Promising to Revolutionize Alzheimer’s Treatments and Human Longevity
Retro Biosciences is preparing for a decisive step. By the end of 2025, the startup is expected to start its first human clinical trial with the experimental pill RTR242. The goal is to address the effects of Alzheimer’s in an unprecedented way.
The study will begin in Australia, where the first patient will receive the initial dosage. The announcement marks a new stage for the company founded in 2021, which received US$ 180 million in funding from Sam Altman, also known for leading ChatGPT.
How the Proposal Works
The focus of the medication is to restore autophagy, a cellular recycling mechanism that loses efficiency with aging.
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When it fails, defective proteins accumulate, increasing the risks of neurodegenerative diseases.
The expectation is that the treatment will help clear this “cellular waste,” making room for advancements against ailments such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s.
According to CEO Joe Betts-LaCroix, the proposal is bold: not just to slow down biological age but to attempt to reverse part of it.
“We want to reset biology to a younger stage,” he declared in an interview with Business Insider.
Other Ongoing Research
Retro is not betting on just one front. Two other projects are in development. The first, called RTR890, aims to create new blood stem cells with the potential to treat leukemia.
The RTR888, on the other hand, is focused on central nervous system diseases and uses stem cell-derived therapy.
This diversified strategy positions the company in a highly competitive market.
Billion-Dollar Longevity Race
Investments in the longevity sector continue to grow because major names believe in the potential of this science.
Retro aims to raise US$ 1 billion in its Series A. Its main competitor, Altos Labs, backed by Jeff Bezos, has already accumulated over US$ 3 billion.
In parallel, OpenAI, also led by Altman, has partnered with Retro to create GPT-4b micro, an artificial intelligence developed for biotechnology.
The technology has increased the expression of cell reprogramming markers by 50 times, a step considered essential for reversing cell aging.
Betts-LaCroix summarizes the impact: extending healthy life by ten years would be a historic achievement. For him, overcoming heart diseases would guarantee four extra years, while cancer would add only three.
“Curing cancer would bring three extra years of life expectancy, and heart diseases, four. Ten years would be one of the greatest achievements in health“, he said.
Billionaires in Search of Youth
The interest of the ultra-wealthy shows the scale of the sector. Over the past two decades, more than R$ 27 billion has been invested in research to try to extend life to 150 years.
Figures like Peter Thiel, Marc Andreessen, and Altman himself are among those who are betting the most on this future. Beyond financial returns, many act out of personal conviction.
Vinod Khosla, founder of Khosla Ventures, has stated that his wish is to see 70-year-olds with the vitality of those in their 40s.
With information from Exame.
