A new Los Angeles research centre, funded with US$6.5m over five years, aims to advance healthy ageing and help older adults live more independently.
The National Institute on Aging has awarded the grant to create the Los Angeles Claude D. Pepper Older Americans Independence Center (LA OAIC). The centre is a collaboration among Cedars-Sinai, the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), and the University of Southern California (USC), and joins a national network of 15 centres.
The LA OAIC will focus on translational geroscience — research that turns discoveries about the biology of ageing into practical treatments that prevent disease and extend healthspan (time spent in good health).
“This centre represents a historic moment for Los Angeles,” said Pinchas Cohen, dean of the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology and co-director of the new centre. “USC has been at the forefront of ageing research for decades, and this partnership allows us to accelerate breakthroughs that can directly improve quality of life for older adults.”
The new centre is led by principal investigator Sara Espinoza, professor of medicine, director of the Center for Translational Geroscience, and co-director of the Center on Aging and Diabetes at Cedars-Sinai.
“This prestigious grant provides Cedars-Sinai the opportunity to expand its geroscience research within our institution, across Los Angeles, and beyond, with the long-term goal of offering evidence-based healthy ageing guidance for older adults,” Espinoza said.
The centre’s four primary aims are to:
• develop advanced gerotherapeutics to extend human healthspan;
• expand the scope of clinical trials in translational geroscience;
• increase the research workforce in translational geroscience; and
• provide leadership, enhance implementation, and promote dissemination of geroscience knowledge.
“This designation strengthens our commitment to addressing the health challenges of ageing — not only for today’s older adults, but for future generations as well,” said Jonathan Wanagat, a geriatrician at UCLA and a co-director of the new OAIC.
With the launch of the OAIC, Los Angeles strengthens its position as a hub of ageing research, Cohen said.
“Experts at the Leonard Davis School are proud to contribute their deep expertise in biology, psychology, sociology, policy and services related to ageing,” he said. “The school, which was founded 50 years ago as the world’s first school of gerontology, has decades of experience turning research in ageing into real-world impact for older adults.”