Resveratrol and
SRT1720 have been shown to act as
sirtuin activators that may ameliorate
type 2 diabetes and
metabolic diseases in mice. Moreover,
resveratrol extends lifespan in model organisms like C. elegans, N. FURZERI, and possibly D. melanogaster. The aim of the study was to test whether pharmacological concentrations of
resveratrol and
SRT1720 are capable of extending lifespan in a nematodal model organism for aging processes, the roundworm Caenorhabditis elegans. Several hundreds of adult C. ELEGANS roundworms were maintained on
agar plates and fed E. COLI strain OP50 bacteria.
Resveratrol (5 micromolar, 500 nanomolar) or
SRT1720 (1 micromolar, 100 nanomolar) was applied to the
agar to test whether they may promote longevity by quantifying survival in the presence and absence of the respective compounds. At a dose of 5 micromolar, which is pharmacologically relevant and 20 times lower than previously published concentrations,
resveratrol significantly extends C. elegans lifespan by 3.6% (mean lifespan) and 3.4% (maximum lifespan). By unexpected contrast,
SRT1720, which was previously proposed to be several hundred times more active than
resveratrol, did not extend lifespan at none of the concentrations tested. Thus, in the model organisms C. elegans,
resveratrol is capable of promoting longevity at a concentration that pharmacologically relevant and 20 times lower than previously published doses. The
sirtuin activator
SRT1720 did not extend lifespan, suggesting that in C. elegans, some relevant effects of
resveratrol cannot be mimicked by
SRT1720.