A naturally occurring supplement could restore memory loss in Alzheimer’s, a mouse study using human gene mutations suggests.

Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+) is a molecule vital for energy production, DNA repair and cellular health, often discussed by longevity specialists as a tool against age-related disease.

Researchers have discovered it can protect the brain from degeneration caused by Alzheimer’s disease.

Lead author Dr Alice Ruixue Ai, an Alzheimer’s researcher at the University of Oslo, said: “Preliminary studies have shown that supplementation with NAD+ precursors, such as (NR) or nicotinamide mononucleotide (NMN), can offer therapeutic benefits in AD [Alzheimer’s disease] animal models and early clinical trials.

“However, the molecular mechanisms behind these benefits remain largely unclear.”

NAD+ naturally declines with age, and it is believed that poor lifestyle choices — including eating a highly processed diet, smoking, drinking alcohol and getting sunburnt — can further diminish the body’s reserves.

The team engineered mice to carry the human Tau P301S mutation that causes neurodegeneration and memory loss.

These mice showed clear memory deficits in a standard behavioural test.

When they gave the mice nicotinamide mononucleotide, a compound that raises NAD+ levels, they found evidence that memory performance returned to normal.

In Alzheimer’s disease, abnormal tau — a misfolded protein that clumps in the brain — is a hallmark of the condition.

The team’s research suggests NAD+ acts through a previously unidentified RNA splicing pathway. RNA carries instructions for building proteins; RNA splicing is the natural editing step that shapes those instructions.

They first saw age-related changes in RNA splicing in a species of worm, then showed that NAD+ could correct splicing problems driven by toxic tau.

Tests in mice indicated this pathway is regulated by a protein called EVA1C, which plays a key role in RNA splicing.

When NAD+ levels rise, EVA1C helps correct splicing errors. This restoration process, involving hundreds of genes, may help reverse damage caused by tau.

Associate professor Evandro Fei Fang-Stavem, said: “Notably, we found when the EVA1C gene was knocked down, these benefits were lost, confirming that EVA1C is essential for NAD+ mediated neuroprotection.

“We propose that maintaining NAD+ levels could help preserve neuronal identity and delay cognitive decline, paving the way for combination treatments to enhance RNA splicing,” added Dr Ai.

NAD+ has gained popularity among longevity enthusiasts and celebrities.

In 2022, Hailey Bieber and Kendall Jenner discussed NAD+ IV drips in the first series of The Kardashians.

NAD+ infusion treatments are available in the UK at specialised wellness clinics.

There are also NAD+ supplements, kits and at-home injections emerging on the market.

Biohacker and longevity entrepreneur Bryan Johnson — who is 47 but claims to have the biological markers of a man in his 30s — also includes NMN supplements in his anti-ageing regimen.

Eye-screening firm Forus Health has received a 21 per cent investment to scale its AI diagnostics across India and abroad.

Forus Health develops ophthalmic diagnostics — tools that detect eye disease — and “oculomics”, which uses eye images to flag wider risks such as diabetes or hypertension. Its devices have screened over 22 million people in more than 75 countries, and its AI-integrated platform has delivered comprehensive eye assessments to over five million patients.

The deal is a secondary transaction intended to support the scale-up of Forus Health’s AI eye-screening platforms and international deployment.

Inviga Healthcare Fund has acquired the 21 per cent stake, its second major investment after Mynvax in 2024, signalling support for India-built AI diagnostics in global markets.

Dr B. S. Ajaikumar, founder of Inviga Healthcare Fund and chair of HCG, said: “Forus Health embodies the Inviga ethos: clinically strong, technologically deep, socially impactful, growth oriented, profitable. This investment is a testament to our confidence in India’s ability to produce world-class healthcare innovations for domestic and international markets. We are delighted to partner with visionary founders like Chandrasekhar (KC) who combine deep insight with execution to make preventive, equitable healthcare a reality.”

K. Chandrasekhar, founder and chief executive of Forus Health, said: “We are thrilled to welcome Inviga as we enter the next phase of our growth. Their expertise in healthcare, operational experience, and insights from a clinician’s perspective are incredibly valuable. Together, we aim to enhance our AI and platform capabilities, utilise our proven ability to innovate in medical devices, and expand our reach both in India and globally. Our mission remains focused on eradicating preventable blindness.”

Rakshith Rangarajan, fund manager at Inviga Healthcare Fund, said: “Our collaboration with Forus is a strategic step intended to facilitate the expansion of a reputed med-tech franchise that is serving a significant market demand through a sustainable and economically sound business model. It reflects our commitment to advancing accessible solutions that address large, unsolved health challenges. The Make in India, Make for India and Make for the World ethos of Forus resonates deeply with our Fund. We’re confident this partnership will drive sustained growth and long-term value creation.”

The burden underscores the need for scalable tools: an estimated 270 million people in India live with visual impairment, much of it preventable; globally, 2.2bn people live with vision impairment or blindness, with over 1bn cases considered preventable or treatable. Forus Health’s 3nethra screening devices and wearable 3nethra specto — a smartphone-operated digital refractor for remote and tele-optometry — target earlier detection and easier access to care.

British scientists are preparing human trials of an anti-ageing pill, claiming they can curb age-related tissue decline.

The team says research has found a way to block necrosis — uncontrolled cell death linked to many age-related diseases.

If successful, doctors could move beyond treating symptoms of ageing to targeting the biological processes that cause it.

British biotech company LinkGevity is preparing to trial what its founders describe as potentially the world’s first drug designed to slow the ageing process, after patenting its experimental drug and completing lab work.

The team is now awaiting regulatory approval for human trials involving kidney-disease patients. It is hoped these will begin in the UK, US and Europe within months — the first real-world test of what the founders call “anti-necrotic therapy”.

Scientists hope that by halting uncontrolled cell death, they will prevent or delay many diseases of old age, including heart failure, liver disease, kidney disease, Parkinson’s, strokes and dementia.

Professor Justin Stebbing, a cancer and cell death expert at Imperial and Anglia Ruskin University who is an adviser to the company, said: “Necrosis sounds like a biology term, but what it really means is tissue rot,”

“If you can prevent that, you don’t just look younger – your organs actually stay younger.”

He added: “No regulator has approved a drug for ageing because it’s difficult to be clear about what end points you’re going to use in studies and how to measure it.

“We’re using the kidney as a model, and we think we have a good chance of being the first anti-ageing drug approved, because we understand the mechanism that we’re dealing with here, and we understand how to stop it.”

The company is supported by Innovate UK, the UK government’s innovation agency, which funds research and development. It also receives backing from Horizon Europe, the EU’s main funding programme for research and innovation, and the Francis Crick Institute, a biomedical research centre based in London.

LinkGevity’s work has also attracted interest from NASA and the European and UK Space Agencies, which are studying how microgravity affects human biology.

The company was founded by sisters Dr Carina Kern, chief executive of LinkGevity, and Serena Kern-Libera, who left established careers to pursue longevity science.

Dr Kern describes the field as restorative medicine: “The body is an interconnected network.

“We’re not just targeting a symptom – we’re targeting the process that drives ageing itself.”

Dr Kern, a former research fellow in ageing-associated disease at University College London, leads LinkGevity’s scientific programme.

Ms Kern-Libera, a lawyer who previously worked at the Bank of England, manages business strategy and partnerships.

“We’ve never before been able to intervene in this type of cell death,” says Dr Kern.

“If we can stop necrosis, we can preserve tissue for longer – and that could mean healthier, longer lives.”

Each day, billions of cells in the human body die and are replaced. Most follow a safe, orderly process called programmed cell death, which removes harmful cells and supports healing and development.

Necrosis, by contrast, is uncontrolled — cells swell, rupture and spill toxic contents that inflame and damage surrounding tissue.

Over time, this “undesirable” and “messy” form of cell death contributes to organ failure, heart disease, dementia and the general tissue decline associated with ageing.

“Necrosis underlies tissue degeneration,” said Serena Kern-Libera. “It’s not limited to one disease. It’s something that happens across the biological system.”

LinkGevity’s research focuses on the calcium pathways that trigger necrosis. Its patented compound is designed to block the calcium overload that causes cell membranes to burst and die.

The firm’s first human trial will focus on patients with kidney disease — one of the organs most vulnerable to necrosis and age-related decline. If successful, they then hope to use the drug as a broader anti-ageing therapy.

NASA believes LinkGevity’s work could also help improve the lives of astronauts.

In space, astronauts lose muscle mass, bone density and calcium balance — changes that mirror aspects of accelerated ageing.

These conditions make astronauts an ideal model for studying tissue degeneration.

Professor Damien Bailey, chair of the Life Science Working Group at the European Space Agency, said: “When astronauts return to earth they are treated much like patients. If a drug can make our cells more resilient, it could be a gamechanger for both space travel and human health on earth.”

The Cambridge start-up is part of a global race to develop therapies that slow ageing.

In the US, billionaire-backed ventures such as Altos Labs (funded by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos), Retro Biosciences (backed by OpenAI’s Sam Altman) and Calico Life Sciences (created by Google’s parent company, Alphabet) are all pursuing ways to rejuvenate human cells.

British firms are investigating cell-reprogramming technologies. LinkGevity, however, takes a simpler approach — focusing not on altering genes but on preventing the destructive cell death that leads to organ decline — letting the body’s normal function restore itself.

Analysts estimate the global longevity market at around £25bn.