Russian President Vladimir Putin has for years projected an image that seems to defy age – sometimes riding shirtless, sometimes playing ice hockey and always flaunting his physicality as a symbol of political prowess. But behind these displays of strength and agility lies another deep obsession, which is shaping Russia’s government policy: the desire to live a long life.
The latest sign of this ambition comes in the form of a Kremlin-backed scientific campaign that involves gene therapy, organ printing, growing human organs in mini-pigs and even ultra-low temperature cryotherapy. All this is being done under Russia’s huge $26 billion government scheme called ‘New Health Preservation Technologies’.
After this program, the discussion has intensified that 73-year-old Putin is probably looking at anti-aging science not just to stay fit and healthy, but also as a way to remain in power for a long time.
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Putin was heard talking to Jinping about longevity
According to a report in ‘The Wall Street Journal’, a conversation was recorded during the meeting between Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping during the military parade in Beijing last year. In this conversation, Putin’s interest in prolonging human life was revealed. Putin was heard saying that a person can achieve immortality by changing his body parts. Initially, many people ignored it considering it to be a strange conversation between old and powerful leaders.
It is worth noting that Putin and Jinping are of almost the same age. If we look at this conversation in the context of Russia’s new project, it seems that Putin was not saying this jokingly but seriously.
Last month, the Russian government announced that scientists were developing a gene therapy drug that could slow down the aging process of cells. This project is also part of Russia’s longevity mission.
Russia’s Deputy Science Minister Denis Sekirinsky said on April 23 that the drug is one of the biggest lights in the fight against aging.
Efforts to prepare human organs for transplant also continue
Another major part of this project is to prepare human organs capable of being transplanted in the lab, which Putin had also reportedly mentioned in Beijing. Russian scientists are now working on the process of preparing living tissue through bioprinting i.e. 3D printing and growing human organs in the bodies of genetically modified mini-pigs.
Scientists associated with government agencies claim that they have already bioprinted human cartilage tissue and rat thyroid gland. Their goal is to achieve complete human organ replacement by 2030.
The Kremlin press service said via email, ‘Work is underway on several scientific programs related to this area in the Russian Federation. These projects have the support of the government and many scientists and research institutes are participating in it.
At the center of the initiative are two influential people close to Putin – his daughter Maria Vorontsova, who oversees several government genetics programs, and physicist Mikhail Kovalchuk, who heads the Soviet-era Kurchatov Institute.
Kovalchuk is counted among the leading faces of the Kremlin’s anti-aging campaign. He has consistently argued that science will soon give humans the ability to continuously repair and replace body parts.
Kovalchuk told Russian media, ‘It is difficult to discuss immortality, but the ability to repair human organs will definitely increase.’
How far are Russia’s efforts to prolong life progress?
However, unlike long-term projects backed by Silicon Valley billionaires such as Jeff Bezos, Sam Altman and Peter Thiel, Russia’s efforts have so far yielded limited scientific results.
According to the WSJ report, critics say that many of these big claims are still just imagination.
Alexander Ostrovsky, one of the leading scientists in bioprinting research in Russia, said, ‘If there are no scientific publications, it means that their research is not giving the right results. His claims should, for now, be seen only as ambitions or dreams.
Ostrovsky left Russia after Russia’s war in Ukraine and sold his company, which is now reportedly working with the government.
He said, ‘It is impossible to do science in isolation. Western sanctions have cut off Russian scientists from global collaboration. It is possible that in order to get funding they are telling Putin only what he wants to hear.
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