α-ketoglutarate (CaAKG)
DEα-Ketoglutarat (CaAKG)
Alpha-ketoglutarate (AKG) is a key intermediate in the TCA (citric acid) cycle. It also acts as a required co-substrate for a large family of enzymes (dioxygenases). Those include the TET enzymes and Jumonji histone demethylases, which shape your epigenome. Your blood AKG drops a lot with age, which has motivated testing it as a longevity supplement. In a 2020 mouse study (Asadi Shahmirzadi et al., Cell Metabolism), the calcium-salt form (CaAKG) extended median lifespan in middle-aged female mice (roughly 10 to 17% depending on the group, with about 20% at the 90th percentile in one cohort). Males showed only a non-significant trend. Frailty fell in both sexes, though this ran in a single cohort, not the rigorous multi-site NIA testing program. A small 7-month open-label analysis of 42 self-selected users of a commercial product (Rejuvant; Katcher et al., 2021) reported drops in biological age (by the TruAge methylation clock). But that study was industry-funded, single-arm with no randomization, and had no pre-registered endpoint. CaAKG is sold as a supplement. There is no drug approval for aging, and independent human replication is absent.
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