CohBar, Inc., is focused on a previously untapped field of biology based on a fundamental breakthrough demonstrating the critical role of mitochondrially-derived peptides (MDPs) in age-related diseases. Mitochondrial dysfunction is now implicated in many common age-related diseases including type 2 diabetes mellitus, cardiovascular disease, Parkinson's disease, dementia, and cancer as well as in the aging process itself. CohBar is developing a proprietary series of novel MDPs that will be the next generation of innovative new drugs to treat age related diseases.
CohBar’s mission is to use cutting edge science to provide new treatments to help society address the alarming growth of the diabetes epidemic. According to estimates by the CDC, there are approximately 105 million people have diabetes or prediabetes in the U.S. Nearly 26 million Americans have diabetes, a 10% increase from 2008, and an estimated 79 million adults have prediabetes, a 39% increase from 2008. Diabetes is the seventh-leading cause of death in the U.S. and is a major cause of heart disease, stroke and high blood pressure. Diabetes costs the US $174 billion annually. If current trends continue, as many as 1 in 3 adults in the US could have diabetes by 2050. CohBar is focused on a newly discovered peptide called Humanin, which could have demonstrable therapeutic value in type 2 diabetes. In laboratory testing, Humanin has several potent anti-diabetic effects that if validated in clinical trials, could represent a major advancement in the treatment of diabetes.
All countries are experiencing a growth in the number of elderly people in the population. By 2020 the world population of elderly people is expected to have tripled, with an estimated 700 million people aged 65 years or older. Diseases of aging, including neurodegeneration, metabolic syndrome, and various malignancies, affect the majority of the elderly and require a better understanding of the biological processes involved. Recent studies indicate that growth factors are central to various aging related processes affecting cell survival and senescence have been proposed as possible approaches to the aging problem. CohBar is developing a family of novel growth and survival factors called MDPs, which appear to decline with age and may represent important therapeutic and diagnostic targets for a number of diseases. In addition, these MDPs have been linked to long life span in humans and are being developed as new treatments. For more information on aging and longevity, please visit http://www.einstein.yu.edu/centers/aging/.