Bayer and Hurdle advance healthy aging through personalized solutions

30 Nov 2023 --- Bayer and Hurdle — a pioneer in diagnostic testing — are jointly innovating consumer solutions in healthy aging. Bayer will begin by selling Hurdle’s saliva-based Chronomics Biological Age Test through direct-to-consumer e-commerce. 

The partners aim to advance precision health — personalized health care — and improve the science behind measuring biological age through epigenetic biomarkers. 

“The primary goal is to enable consumers to manage their aging journey better. In this case, understanding where you currently are in that journey in terms of your biological age is a crucial first step in understanding where you need to go,” Jeffrey Donald, communications lead at Bayer Consumer Health in R&D and regulatory, medical, safety, quality and compliance, tells Nutrition Insight. 

Though the companies haven’t disclosed when Hurdle’s age test will be available to consumers, Donald notes the parties intend to launch in early 2024.

Biomarker discovery 
Hurdle’s Chronomics Biological Age Test can analyze people’s biological age through epigenetic technology and DNA methylation data. The company notes that by testing over time, consumers can track how life choices, such as healthier diets, supplements or lifestyle interventions, impact a person’s aging rate. 

Consumers collect a saliva sample, which is analyzed in a lab. For each biomarker tested, consumers receive a result, an explanation of the role of the biomarker in the body and suggestions on how to improve the outcomes. 

Hurdle recommends retaking the test to measure the impact of interventions implemented. 

Through the partnership, Bayer and Hurdle aim to enable consumers to manage their aging journey better.Tom Stubbs, CEO of Hurdle, comments: “Our partnership with Bayer marks a significant leap in precision health. At Hurdle, we’ve streamlined the journey from biomarker discovery to consumer-meaningful products, thanks to our advanced technology and extensive network.”

“Teamed up with Bayer’s expertise in consumer health, we’re poised to redefine and expedite self-care solutions. Together, we’re championing precision health, prioritizing speed and individualized solutions to advance the science behind measuring biological age.”

Biological age
Tests to measure biological age are becoming increasingly advanced. Earlier this year, researchers developed a third-generation DNA methylation clock to assess the rate of aging in people with chronic kidney disease. 

“Biological age, or ‘bioage,’ is essentially the difference between one’s chronological age (in years) and their body’s biological or cellular age. This metric is increasingly recognized as a crucial factor in understanding overall health, as accelerated aging is often correlated with various diseases and a higher risk of mortality,” a Hurdle spokesperson tells Nutrition Insight. 

The spokesperson further explains that epigenetics — which involves the study of changes in gene expression — is considered the most accurate method to determine biological age. Unlike DNA, which is largely fixed, “epigenetic factors are dynamic and can be influenced by environmental factors and various interventions. This means that with the right approaches, it may be possible to positively impact one's biological age.”

“The potential we see in precision health is to enable consumers to better manage their health at every stage between monitoring, awareness and diagnosis on one end and education, treatment and prevention on the other,” envisions Donald. 

“This is a dramatic shift in an industry built on a simple problem-solution dynamic as it helps consumers to be more proactive and preventative with their health.”

Developing innovations 
The partners will integrate Hurdle’s technology with Bayer’s product development and global footprint. 

Bayer’s precision health business unit has been focused on developing new delivery formats and digital products that advise on various health categories. 

“With Hurdle, we plan to continue advancing the science around epigenetic biomarkers,” details Donald. 

“Broadly speaking, we are also primarily interested in innovating in those areas where people can manage health decisions on their own — namely, lifestyle factors such as nutrition, exercise and sleep hygiene, accomplished with an underlying data and science-driven foundation to help guide them.” 

He adds that the promise of precision health is being able to join all these factors in a holistic ecosystem that becomes unique to each consumer and their journey. 

“We aspire to offer consumers in key markets around the world solutions to aid their healthy aging journey, and we will work toward that,” concludes Donald. 

By Jolanda van Hal