David E. Harrison
Led the 2009 result that made rapamycin the first drug shown to extend mammalian lifespan even when started late in life
PhD, Stanford · Professor & Senior Staff Scientist, The Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor, Maine
Faculty profile, The Jackson Laboratory ↗
Portrait: The Jackson Laboratory
David Harrison has worked for decades on aging in mouse models at the Jackson Laboratory, with a particular focus on hematopoietic stem cells and on genetic and pharmacological interventions that extend healthy lifespan. He directs the Jackson Laboratory site of the NIA's Interventions Testing Program (ITP).
Harrison's site produced the first published evidence, in 2009, that rapamycin fed late in life extends lifespan in genetically heterogeneous mice — a result subsequently replicated across all three ITP sites and now considered one of the best-established findings in the biology of aging. His group has continued to test additional compounds, including acarbose and 17-alpha-estradiol, through the same rigorous multi-site design.
The timeline below follows Harrison's contributions gathered in this Atlas.
Milestones in the Atlas
| Year | Evidence | Study |
|---|---|---|
| 2009 | A | Rapamycin fed late in life extends lifespan in genetically heterogeneous mice HAR2009 First published ITP result: rapamycin fed late in life extends lifespan in genetically heterogeneous mice. |
| 2011 | A | Rapamycin, but not resveratrol or simvastatin, extends life span of genetically heterogeneous mice MIL2011 Confirms rapamycin, but not resveratrol or simvastatin, extends lifespan in the ITP's mouse cohorts. |
| 2012 | A | Evaluation of resveratrol, green tea extract, curcumin, oxaloacetic acid, and medium-chain triglyceride oil on life span of genetically heterogeneous mice STR2012 None of five popular longevity compounds had a statistically significant effect on lifespan. The paper explicitly states the ITP's mission is to publish all results, positive or negative - the exact registry model this Atlas should emulate. |
| 2012 | A | Rapamycin slows aging in mice WIL2012 Answered a crucial objection: does rapamycin really slow AGING, or just prevent the cancers that kill mice? By showing slower age-related change across many tissues (heart, liver, tendon, activity), it argued for genuine slowing of aging. Honestly reported harms too - more cataracts and testicular degeneration - making it a balanced landmark, not hype. |
| 2014 | A | Acarbose, 17-alpha-estradiol, and nordihydroguaiaretic acid extend mouse lifespan preferentially in males HAR2014 Shows acarbose, 17-alpha-estradiol and NDGA extend mouse lifespan preferentially by sex. |
| 2022 | A | Lifespan benefits for the combination of rapamycin plus acarbose and for captopril in genetically heterogeneous mice STR2022 NIA Interventions Testing Program C2017 cohort. In MALE mice, rapamycin plus acarbose started at 9 months produced a longer lifespan than either of the two prior ITP cohorts treated with rapamycin alone, suggesting the combination is more potent than its components used separately. In FEMALES the combination was neither better nor worse than rapamycin alone, which the authors relate to the limited survival benefit acarbose alone had shown in earlier female cohorts. Captopril gave a small but significant lifespan increase in females (4-5%). CAVEAT (important for how this is cited): the rapamycin-only comparison is HISTORICAL, against prior cohorts, not a concurrent rapamycin-only arm in the same experiment, so 'more potent than either component' is the authors' suggestion rather than a within-experiment randomised comparison. |