Russian researchers propose theoretical human lifespan of up to 156 years

Researchers from Russia have presented a theoretical model indicating that, if the effects of somatic mutations were removed, humans might live as long as 156 years. The model is based on analyses of DNA damage that accumulates in body cells over a lifetime and is considered a key factor limiting lifespan. The study, published in the journal npj Aging, does not claim to have identified a practical method for extending life, and it acknowledges other aging processes such as mitochondrial dysfunction, epigenetic drift, telomere shortening and loss of proteostasis.

Somatic mutations, which arise from environmental exposure and errors in DNA replication, accumulate in tissues that lack regenerative capacity, notably the brain and heart. According to Jordan Weiss, an assistant professor at New York University’s Grossman School of Medicine, “The conditions that cost people their independent, healthy years—such as dementia and heart failure—fall heavily on precisely the tissues that cannot regenerate.”

Egle Pavyde, a pharmacist and regenerative-medicine researcher, said the work quantifies a long-standing hypothesis that DNA damage contributes to the finite human lifespan, adding that it represents only one component of a complex biological system. The authors suggest that future anti-aging research should focus on preventing or repairing DNA damage in non-regenerative organs.

The study also references existing public-health recommendations from the National Institutes of Health, noting that lifestyle measures such as avoiding smoking, maintaining a healthy weight, getting adequate sleep, vaccinations, cancer screenings, and managing hypertension and cholesterol can add roughly a decade to life expectancy. Luigi Ferrucci, scientific director of the NIH’s National Institute on Aging, emphasized that these interventions are already available and effective.