How close is humanity to cracking the code of ageing?

Humanity’s ancient quest for immortality is entering a new scientific era, with advances in biotechnology, genetics and medicine fuelling fresh interest in whether human lifespan can be extended, according to an opinion piece published by Al Jazeera.

The idea of living indefinitely has appeared across religious and literary traditions. The Epic of Gilgamesh, one of the world’s oldest surviving literary works, describes Gilgamesh’s search for immortality after the death of his companion Enkidu.

Nearly 4,000 years later, the subject resurfaced during a hot-microphone exchange between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping. Putin referred to advances in organ transplantation, while Xi cited predictions that humans could potentially live to 150 years this century.

The discussion comes as investment in longevity biotechnology grows rapidly. Unlike traditional pharmaceuticals, biotechnology uses biological systems to address medical problems. Longevity biotechnology focuses on the biological mechanisms associated with ageing, with the aim of extending either healthspan — the period of life spent in good health — or lifespan.

Interest in ageing research is not new. Chinese Emperor Qin Shi Huang is believed to have died from suspected mercury poisoning while pursuing an elixir of immortality. In the 1920s, Alexander Bogdanov experimented with blood transfusions from young people to older individuals, although there is little evidence that the approach worked.

More recently, however, funding has surged. According to Al Jazeera, longevity biotechnology companies raised about $3.74 billion in the first quarter of 2026 alone, while academic journals and pharmaceutical companies have increasingly focused on ageing and longevity research.

A key development has been scientists’ growing understanding of the hallmarks of ageing — 12 interconnected biological processes that include genomic instability and chronic inflammation. Researchers have identified genes involved in these processes, and manipulating some of them in animal models has improved health and, in certain cases, significantly extended lifespan.

The success of artificial intelligence and highly effective obesity medicines has also helped fuel investor enthusiasm for longevity research. Obesity drugs have demonstrated that a complex, multifactorial condition can be treated far more effectively than previously expected, encouraging speculation that similarly difficult biological problems could eventually be addressed.

Yet significant scientific and regulatory obstacles remain.

Ageing is not a conventional disease but a fundamental biological process affecting living organisms. As a result, manipulating it could produce unintended effects elsewhere in the body. Clinical trials of potential longevity treatments remain at an early stage, meaning it could take years or decades to establish whether they can meaningfully extend human healthspan or lifespan.

The US Food and Drug Administration does not currently recognise ageing itself as a disease target, meaning companies must demonstrate benefits against specific diseases or measurable aspects of health.

One area of research involves DNA repair, which becomes less effective with age. However, altering DNA repair mechanisms could also interfere with normal biological processes. B cells, for example, deliberately introduce mutations into their DNA to produce effective antibodies, raising questions about how such treatments could affect the immune system.

The Al Jazeera analysis concludes that treating ageing may eventually become possible, but researchers will need to carefully balance ageing, immunity, reproduction, growth and cellular maintenance — processes that have evolved together over billions of years.

By Sabina Mammadli