Humanity’s perennial quest has been for the fountain of youth — long before healthspans, biohacking and longevity became buzzwords.
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healthspans → become → youth
It’s a search that has taken on a precise focus as scientific research — and breakthroughs — have started to deliver tangible possibilities.
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research → ’ → possibilities
NAD+ and NMN are already familiar names in the longevity lexicon, but now sirtuins are moving into the spotlight.
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sirtuins → move → spotlight
These seven protein enzymes found in our cells regulate cellular health, metabolism, stress and ageing.
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enzymes → find → health
They become less active, and therefore less effective, as we age, slowing our repair systems, impacting energy production and impairing cellular defence.
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we → become → defence
One in particular — Sirtuin 6 — has intrigued longevity researchers for years.
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One → intrigue → years
“It sits at the intersection of several processes that are fundamental to ageing,” says Dr Vera Gorbunova, a longevity scientist who is also a scientific advisory board member at health research organisation DoNotAge.org.
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who → sit → DoNotAge.org
Involved in multiple critical cellular processes in our bodies, Sirtuin 6 “helps repair damaged DNA, protect the genome, regulate inflammation and maintain healthy cellular function,” says Alan Graves, DoNotAge’s founder and clinical research advisor.
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Graves → involve → function
“It sits at the intersection of several processes that are fundamental to ageing”
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that → sit → ageing
Over the past two decades, Gorbunova’s research into long-lived animal species, including naked mole rats and bowhead whales, shows that the longer mammals live, the higher the Sirtuin 6 activity.
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mammals → live → activity
“One recurring theme is much better maintenance and repair of the genome,” she says, meaning slower ageing and protection against age-related diseases.
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she → recur → diseases
“SIRT6 has evolved to be more effective in longer-lived species.”
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SIRT6 → evolve → species
Graves adds that high levels of Sirtuin 6 activity are also found in humans over 100 years old.
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levels → add → humans
It’s this conclusion that underpins DoNotAge’s SIRT6 Activator.
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that → ’ → Activator
The supplement is designed to be taken long-term.
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supplement → design → ?
Backed by Gorbunova’s research, it’s derived from a specific type of fucoidan — a compound found in brown seaweed.
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it → back → seaweed
It “activates Sirtuin 6, which in turn supports DNA repair and the maintenance of a more youthful, stable epigenome,” she says.
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she → activate → epigenome
“We’re not adding SIRT6,” says Graves, “we’re giving your existing SIRT6 a helping hand so it can perform its protective functions like it did when you were young.”
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you → add → functions
A study by Dr Haim Cohen, a molecular biologist, showed that genetically upping Sirtuin 6 increased the healthy lifespan of mice by 30 per cent.
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upping → show → cent
Studies into increasing Sirtuin 6 in humans are in fairly early stages, but a University of North Carolina study found that Sirtuin 6 activation improved DNA repair in aged human cells.
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activation → increase → cells
Creating the activator is no mean feat — “it can take six months of harvesting the seaweed, testing a batch, failing, then repeating until we find a batch that is a strong activator,” says Graves.
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Graves → create → batch
Testing happens at Gorbunova’s lab in New York — “most fucoidan does not work, and some are even harmful,” she says.
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she → happen → York
When the right fucoidan is harvested, tested, processed and then taken, notable effects are things you can’t necessarily feel — it’s “what’s happening underneath the surface and what that could mean over decades,” says Graves.
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Graves → harvest → decades
An ongoing trial exploring the efficacy of fucoidan by the National University of Singapore began in 2025, testing the hypothesis that supplementing with fucoidan activates Sirtuin 6 effectively.
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supplementing → explore → Sirtuin
Results are expected early next year.
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Results → expect → ?
The next step is rejuvenating — “the possibility of restoring a younger epigenetic state without changing the identity of the cell,” she says — bringing that elusive fountain ever closer.
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she → rejuvenate → fountain
The Aporia
