The Effect of Ketogenic Diet on Longevity and Aging: A Murine Model Study

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Investigator: Minghao Zhao, MS
Sponsor: Global Health Sciences Education

Location(s): United States

Description

Model organism studies pave a way to expend mammalian lifespan and delay geriatric syndromes. Studies showed that Calorie restriction (CR) in murine models could delay the onset and progression of aging-related diseases and extend lifespan. This project aims to evaluate a novel mediator at the concentration of CR, the ketone body β- hydroxybutyrate (BOHB), using RNA-sequencing to catalog the effect of BOHB delivered via ketogenic diet (KD) for one week on gene expression in liver and brain of the one-year-old mice. Furthermore, this study will assess behavioral phenotypes that correspond to human frailty among the one-year-old mice fed KD, using grip strength, exercise capacity, gait speed, and water maze tests.

Mentors:John Newman, MD, PhD & Nancy Hills, PhD