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Brian P. Hanley | |
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| Born | 1957 (age 66–67) |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation(s) | microbiologist, CEO of Butterfly Sciences |
Brian P. Hanley (born c. 1957) is an American microbiologist and founder of Butterfly Sciences. He is known for self-experimenting with gene therapy to try to improve health span. [1] [2]
Early in his research career, Hanley’s areas of study were biodefense and terrorism. He contributed chapters to two books about these subjects. [3] [4] Hanley obtained a PhD in Microbiology from University of California, Davis in 2009. [5] [6] The same year, he founded Butterfly Sciences in Davis, California to develop a gene therapy to treat HIV AIDS using a combination of GHRH [7] and an intracellular vaccine. [6] [8]
After founding Butterfly Sciences, Hanley continued publishing scholarly literature in multiple fields that examined economic topics such as banking, [9] [10] [11] cryptocurrency [12] and climate. [13]
During the COVID-19 pandemic, with Steve Keen and George Church, Hanley also contributed to literature about public health strategy in response to the pandemic. [12]
Hanley could not raise money for his company Butterfly Sciences and decided to obtain proof of concept by testing gene therapy on himself. Hanley said: “I wanted to prove it, I wanted to do it for myself, and I wanted to make progress.” [2] He designed the plasmid containing a gene coding for growth hormone–releasing hormone and had it made by a scientific supply company for around $10,000. [2] However, the total cost of development was over $500,000. [14]
He said that he corresponded with the FDA prior to starting his self-experimentation, and that the FDA told him he needed to file and get approval for an Investigational New Drug (IND) application, but Hanley did not agree that he needed FDA approval and proceeded without it. [2] Hanley later co-authored a 2019 paper on Self-Experimentation, ethics and law with George Church, which bears out his position regarding the necessity for an IND. [15] He did not perform any animal tests before testing the plasmid on himself, but won institutional review board (IRB) approval regardless on his proposed clinical research plans. [2]
A physician assisted in administration of the plasmid to Hanley's thigh using electroporation. [2] The plasmids were administered twice: once in summer 2015 and a second larger dose in July 2016. [2] [16] [17]
Hanley claims the treatment has helped him. [18] [19] He reported that his white blood cell count and testosterone increased and his LDL levels dropped. [20] [21]
A researcher at George Church’s Harvard University laboratory observed the experiment and Hanley’s blood was then studied. [2] [16] The scientific results were published in December 2021, coauthored with George Church. [19]
Hanley published an article in 2011 providing a biological explanation for transgender identity and homosexuality. [19]
Gene therapy is a medical technology that aims to produce a therapeutic effect through the manipulation of gene expression or through altering the biological properties of living cells.
A plasmid is a small, extrachromosomal DNA molecule within a cell that is physically separated from chromosomal DNA and can replicate independently. They are most commonly found as small circular, double-stranded DNA molecules in bacteria; however, plasmids are sometimes present in archaea and eukaryotic organisms. Plasmids often carry useful genes, such as for antibiotic resistance. While chromosomes are large and contain all the essential genetic information for living under normal conditions, plasmids are usually very small and contain additional genes for special circumstances.
Life extension is the concept of extending the human lifespan, either modestly through improvements in medicine or dramatically by increasing the maximum lifespan beyond its generally-settled biological limit of around 125 years. Several researchers in the area, along with "life extensionists", "immortalists", or "longevists", postulate that future breakthroughs in tissue rejuvenation, stem cells, regenerative medicine, molecular repair, gene therapy, pharmaceuticals, and organ replacement will eventually enable humans to have indefinite lifespans through complete rejuvenation to a healthy youthful condition (agerasia). The ethical ramifications, if life extension becomes a possibility, are debated by bioethicists.
Bioethics is both a field of study and professional practice, interested in ethical issues related to health, including those emerging from advances in biology, medicine, and technologies. It proposes the discussion about moral discernment in society and it is often related to medical policy and practice, but also to broader questions as environment, well-being and public health. Bioethics is concerned with the ethical questions that arise in the relationships among life sciences, biotechnology, medicine, politics, law, theology and philosophy. It includes the study of values relating to primary care, other branches of medicine, ethical education in science, animal, and environmental ethics, and public health.
Telomerase, also called terminal transferase, is a ribonucleoprotein that adds a species-dependent telomere repeat sequence to the 3' end of telomeres. A telomere is a region of repetitive sequences at each end of the chromosomes of most eukaryotes. Telomeres protect the end of the chromosome from DNA damage or from fusion with neighbouring chromosomes. The fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster lacks telomerase, but instead uses retrotransposons to maintain telomeres.
Human genetic enhancement or human genetic engineering refers to human enhancement by means of a genetic modification. This could be done in order to cure diseases, prevent the possibility of getting a particular disease, to improve athlete performance in sporting events, or to change physical appearance, metabolism, and even improve physical capabilities and mental faculties such as memory and intelligence. These genetic enhancements may or may not be done in such a way that the change is heritable.
Strategies for engineered negligible senescence (SENS) is a range of proposed regenerative medical therapies, either planned or currently in development, for the periodic repair of all age-related damage to human tissue. These therapies have the ultimate aim of maintaining a state of negligible senescence in patients and postponing age-associated disease. SENS was first defined by British biogerontologist Aubrey de Grey. Many mainstream scientists believe that it is a fringe theory. De Grey later highlighted similarities and differences of SENS to subsequent categorization systems of the biology of aging, such as the highly influential Hallmarks of Aging published in 2013.
A designer baby is a baby whose genetic makeup has been selected or altered, often to exclude a particular gene or to remove genes associated with disease. This process usually involves analysing a wide range of human embryos to identify genes associated with particular diseases and characteristics, and selecting embryos that have the desired genetic makeup; a process known as preimplantation genetic diagnosis. Screening for single genes is commonly practiced, and polygenic screening is offered by a few companies. Other methods by which a baby's genetic information can be altered involve directly editing the genome before birth, which is not routinely performed and only one instance of this is known to have occurred as of 2019, where Chinese twins Lulu and Nana were edited as embryos, causing widespread criticism.
Self-experimentation refers to single-subject research in which the experimenter conducts the experiment on themself.
Rejuvenation is a medical discipline focused on the practical reversal of the aging process.
George McDonald Church is an American geneticist, molecular engineer, chemist, serial entrepreneur, and pioneer in personal genomics and synthetic biology. He is the Robert Winthrop Professor of Genetics at Harvard Medical School, Professor of Health Sciences and Technology at Harvard University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and a founding member of the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University.
Gene delivery is the process of introducing foreign genetic material, such as DNA or RNA, into host cells. Gene delivery must reach the genome of the host cell to induce gene expression. Successful gene delivery requires the foreign gene delivery to remain stable within the host cell and can either integrate into the genome or replicate independently of it. This requires foreign DNA to be synthesized as part of a vector, which is designed to enter the desired host cell and deliver the transgene to that cell's genome. Vectors utilized as the method for gene delivery can be divided into two categories, recombinant viruses and synthetic vectors.
The Methuselah Foundation is an American-based global non-profit organization based in Springfield, Virginia, with a declared mission to "make 90 the new 50 by 2030" by supporting tissue engineering and regenerative medicine therapies. The organization was originally incorporated by David Gobel in 2001 as the Performance Prize Society, a name inspired by the British governments Longitude Act, which offered monetary rewards for anyone who could devise a portable, practical solution for determining a ship's longitude.
Pro-aging trance, also known as pro-aging edifice, is a term coined by British author and biomedical gerontologist Aubrey de Grey to describe the broadly positive and fatalistic attitude toward aging in society.
The SENS Research Foundation is a non-profit organization that does research programs and public relations work for the application of regenerative medicine to aging. It was founded in 2009, located in Mountain View, California, US. The organization publishes its reports annually.
The anti-aging movement is a social movement devoted to eliminating or reversing aging, or reducing the effects of it. A substantial portion of the attention of the movement is on the possibilities for life extension, but there is also interest in techniques such as cosmetic surgery which ameliorate the effects of aging rather than delay or defeat it.
John Morley Harris, FMedSci, FRSA, FRSB, is a British bioethicist and philosopher. He is the Lord Alliance Professor of Bioethics and Director of the Institute for Science, Ethics and Innovation at the University of Manchester.
William Henry Andrews is an American molecular biologist and gerontologist whose career is centered on searching for a cure for human aging. Andrews is the founder and president of the biotechnology company Sierra Sciences. In the 1990s, he led the team at Geron Corporation that was the first to successfully identify the genes for human enzyme telomerase. This enzyme is responsible for preventing telomeres from shortening in human primordial germ cells.
A geroprotector aims to affect the root cause of aging and age-related diseases, and thus prolong the life span of animals. Some possible geroprotectors include melatonin, carnosine, metformin, rapamycin, nicotinamide mononucleotide (NMN) and delta sleep-inducing peptide.
BioViva is an American biotechnology gene therapy company, based in Bainbridge Island, Washington, researching treatments to interfere in the aging process in humans.
| Authority control databases: Academics |
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