Related to this thread, these Russian biohackers first tried the plasma dilution therapy two years ago, as covered in this news story (see link at bottom of this post):
The group’s scientific advisor, Alexander Fedintsev (read our interview with him) devised a protocol for plasma dilution in humans and a panel of biomarkers to watch. Then, following some logistical wizardry, the procedure was performed on two volunteers. Though not a scientific study per se, this experiment produced interesting, overall positive, results that can potentially influence and guide further research. Our interviewees think that biohacking, when done right, may become an important factor in the longevity field.
How did you choose the tests for the panel?
It would have been interesting to look at cognitive and muscular markers, but both our participants were too young: 50-60 years old. They probably do not have sarcopenia or cognitive decline yet, so there was no way for us to measure it. We chose different biomarkers, such as liver function – both of our participants had had some abnormalities in their liver biomarkers. We wanted to check kidney function because it declines with age. We checked the immune system, because as we age, the number of naïve T cells declines, and these are indispensable for fighting new infections. Immunosenescence is a hot topic in times of COVID. Hematopoietic cell aging is characterized by a shift towards myeloid progenitors. We looked at the ratio of neutrophils and lymphocytes, how it changed. Cholesterol is another important marker in the lipid profile of blood. We did a very comprehensive lipid profile that included a rare biomarker that many labs do not check for – oxidized low-density lipoproteins (Ox-LDL). I can say that this marker plummeted all the way down to its normal level in one participant that had it elevated prior to the procedure. We also checked for various hormones, including insulin-like growth factor (IGF), that are related to aging and lifespan, and many other markers, including biochemical ones, such as urea and uric acid, along with oxidative stress markers, such as lipid peroxidation products and glutathione. Contrary to epigenetic clocks, these markers can be clinically interpreted.
Do you plan to publish the results, maybe as a case study?
We have all the data published as a Google spreadsheet on our website so that researchers can see it. We do not plan to publish an article. First, I am convinced that soon we will have full-scale clinical trials of this method, maybe by the Conboys, and there is something in the works here in Russia as well. I do not know how valuable our data is, considering our sample size was just two people. We just wanted to see whether it was possible to arrange such an intervention in humans using the means we had at our disposal, and whether it would do any good. Now we know it actually did some good, in terms of the number of naïve T-cells, levels of oxidized LDL. The drop in Ox-LDL levels was probably due not simply to dilution but to some deeper processes, because in one participant, these levels declined, while in the other they went up from an originally low level. So, in both participants, LDL levels normalized and stayed normal for at least two weeks. Liver markers improved by a lot, and the myelocyte/lymphocyte ratio improved. There were some controversial results, such as one participant having insulin levels decline four-fold but not the other one.
The Russian Biohacker Website (use the google chrome web browser for automatic translation of the website): BIOHACKERS FOR LONGEVITY - Scientific Expert Group RLE
Or use this: https://translate.google.com/?sl=auto&tl=en&op=websites
RLE Group is a biotech startup with a mission to develop bioengineering solutions for healthy life extension. Founded by a group of scientists and biohackers known for their experiment to translate therapeutic plasma exchange on human beings.
Details on the Russian Biohacker Plasma Dilution Experiment:
English Translation:
Not so long ago we wrote about a new promising method of rejuvenation: plasma donation with the replenishment of an important transport protein - albumin. The essence of the method is to dilute the plasma, reducing the concentration of harmful substances in it. Plasma dilution or dilution still sounds long enough, so from now on, we will simply call it plasmapheresis, although this is not entirely correct. In the article, I highlighted the benefits of this method in detail, and our team decided to try it out for themselves. Interestingly, as soon as we did the first procedure, another article came out where the authors emphasized that plasmapheresis reduced neuroinflammation and improved cognitive function. But can this intervention improve people’s health?
As you can see, most of the markers decreased in both biohackers, many markers returned to normal, although initially they were much beyond the reference values. Let’s look at the markers by groups:
- Liver markers showed excellent positive dynamics in both participants . The AST values reached the norm, and the ALT values did not reach the norm quite a bit, but it is possible that liver recovery is a slightly longer process and 3 days is not enough.
- Hormones . IGF-1 did not change significantly in any of the participants. Interestingly, insulin decreased in one experimenter by almost 4 times! Unfortunately, in the second it increased (albeit within the normal range), which does not allow us to think about the presence of a reliable effect.
- Kidney function remained apparently unchanged. Creatinine decreased slightly in both experimenters, and cystatin C showed multidirectional dynamics.
- A downward trend was demonstrated by such markers as uric acid and urea .
- The situation with the lipid profile is extremely interesting . One of the participants in the experiment had an excess of total cholesterol, LDL, HDL and, most importantly, oxidized LDL , which damages the vascular endothelium and promotes atherosclerosis through a number of other mechanisms. So, they all returned to normal, and oxidized LDL decreased by almost half ! Of course, one can argue that there was simply a 2-fold dilution of the plasma, so oxidized LDL decreased by 2 times, but the nuance is that in the second participant in the experiment, the values of cholesterol and individual fractions increased (remaining within the normal range)! So the simple hypothesis of lowering cholesterol due to dilution is less plausible and there is hope that there is not a one-sided decrease, but optimization . cholesterol levels (high falls, low rises). We will test this hypothesis later.
- One of the key features of aging is chronic systemic inflammation . Both of our brave experimenters had a slightly elevated C-reactive protein. In both, it decreased after the intervention, while this reduced level persisted for at least one more week in one of the biohackers (the other has not retested yet).
- And another very interesting change is an increase in the number of naive lymphocytes (by 37%)! Naïve lymphocytes are the most important marker of the aging of the immune system and their number steadily decreases as the body ages, so their increase is undoubtedly a positive sign. Unfortunately, due to technical reasons, we were only able to perform this analysis on one person. However, both experimenters had a significant decrease in the ratio of neutrophils to lymphocytes, which is another marker of the aging of the immune system. Moreover, for both, this marker either remained at a low level, or continued to decline 10 days after the last procedure. So with caution, perhaps, we can talk about some potential beneficial effect onimmune system .
- Albumin did not change in both participants, which means that we correctly calculated the dose and the intervention turned out as planned.
Thus, our data indicate the potential for therapeutic dilution of plasma. Of course, this pilot mini-study has a lot of limitations: an ultra-small sample size, relatively young and relatively healthy participants, an incomplete protocol, not all biomarkers were retaken, it is not clear how long the result lasts, if there is an effect, etc. We will definitely take all this into account. But if repeated experiments show that there is an effect and it is long-term, then we get almost the first intervention that has a systemic positive effect on the body for a long time without the need for frequent repetition. And this is exactly what biohacking is in our understanding. Not drinking unproven useless (and even potentially harmful) dietary supplements, but such serious medical procedures. Of course, there is also the question of causality - will positive changes in these markers prolong life? It is impossible to give an exact answer to this, but based on an understanding of human physiology and the biology of aging, the answer is rather yes.
Most likely, something like this has been done for a long time, but it’s nice to know that we were the first to do therapeutic dilution of plasma with the addition of albumin, measure markers and openly talk about it. We express our deep gratitude to Andrey Isaev, the head of the network of DNA laboratories , where we handed over the biomarker panel, as well as to all the doctors who did their job in a highly professional manner. Register on our website to receive regular updates and access to restricted materials (for example, a panel of biomarkers and a description of the protocol for this study) - there is a lot of interesting things ahead of us, because our group has several more promising projects in the works.