GlycanAge Files IPO Prospectus: Pioneering Glycan-Based Biological Age Testing with 200,000+ Validated Samples and 30 Years of Scientific Research

The Quest for Longevity Seems Endless.

From the elixirs and ambrosia in Greek mythology, to the “Well of Urd” at the roots of the World Tree (Yggdrasil) in Norse mythology, and further to the Tang Monk’s flesh and alchemical pills in Journey to the West, it is evident from these mythological elements spanning cultures both East and West that since ancient times, people have harbored the desire to “prolong life” and “retain eternal youth.”

And now, this seemingly distant vision is inching closer to reality. As researchers delve deeper, the veil shrouding the aging process is gradually being lifted. Consequently, the development of so-called “aging clocks” has emerged as a highly popular research avenue.

Aging clocks are algorithmic models that estimate biological age based on molecular features, helping us understand the mechanisms of aging, assess the rate of aging, predict the risk of chronic diseases, and test anti-aging interventions.

Currently, epigenetic clocks have garnered widespread attention. Over time, chemical modifications to DNA can predict our biological aging process, thereby providing data support for anti-aging interventions. Several companies are now commercializing these as testing services. Meanwhile, another innovative approach in anti-aging diagnostics—the glycan aging clock—is gradually entering the public eye. The glycan aging clock focuses on changes in glycans attached to immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibodies, supporting the theory that chronic low-grade inflammation and its progressive increase are key drivers of aging and disease.

Glycans are a key factor influencing lifespan, with changes occurring more than a decade before the onset of cardiovascular disease, hypertension, and insulin resistance. To unlock their potential in the field of anti-aging, GlycanAge has entered the market.

This is a company focused on developing the GlycanAge biological clock. Founded in 2020, it is dedicated to transforming health management from a passive to a proactive approach. The company has launched a glycan aging clock called “GlycanAge,” which enables at-home testing using a simple test kit.

GlycanAge’s Scientific Advisory Board comprises scientists, researchers, physicians, and writers specializing in glycobiology, immunology, longevity science, and molecular biology, including key figures from the Human Glycome Project. They hold faculty positions at world-renowned academic institutions and have published hundreds of papers in peer-reviewed scientific journals. The core team at GlycanAge brings over 30 years of experience to the field, positioning itself at the forefront of global glycoscience.

The company’s founder, Gordan Lauc, is a Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at the University of Zagreb, Director of the National Centre of Research Excellence in Personalized Healthcare, Honorary Professor at the University of Edinburgh and King’s College London, and a member of the Johns Hopkins Scholars Society. In 2017, he launched the Human Glycome Project and serves as one of its two co-directors.

His research team is investigating high-throughput glycomics analysis and the application of glycan biomarkers in the field of precision medicine. By integrating glycomics data with extensive genetic, epigenetic, biochemical, and physiological data within a systems biology framework, they aim to elucidate the roles of glycans in normal physiology and disease. This work has also established a robust foundation of scientific research for the launch of the GlycanAge glycan aging clock.This clock was developed by Professor Gordan Lauc in the Genos Glycoscience laboratory, a Croatian biotechnology company. Notably, this laboratory is the world’s largest high-throughput glycan analysis facility.

Meanwhile, GlycanAge has also attracted Bill Andrews, a world-leading longevity expert. As a renowned Ph.D. in molecular and population genetics, Dr. Andrews has been deeply interested in anti-aging since his youth. Dedicated to reversing aging since the age of 10, he is the founder of the biotechnology company Sierra Sciences and has worked in the biotech industry for over 34 years.

To provide users with personalized intervention recommendations, such as tailored dietary combinations and eating habits based on aging detection results, the team has also appointed Tim Spector, Professor of Genetic Epidemiology at King’s College London.

Tim Spector is an expert in genetics, epigenetics, the microbiome, and nutrition, with a particular focus on the microbiome—the vast communities of microorganisms living in the human gut, on the skin, and throughout the body. He is the author of books such as The Diet Myth: The Real Science Behind What We Eat and Spoon-Fed: Why Almost Everything We’ve Been Told About Food Is Wrong. These two Sunday Times bestsellers encourage people to question every diet plan, official recommendation, miracle cure, or food label they encounter, and to rethink their overall relationship with food. The latter has been published in more than 10 countries.

Notably, Tim Spector maintains a calm and critical perspective on the food industry. He is deeply concerned about the lack of robust scientific evidence underpinning medical and governmental dietary recommendations, as well as the influence of the food industry on these policies and public choices. Tim Spector argues that current advice on food and nutrition is largely dangerous, misleading, or even entirely incorrect, urgently requiring constructive revision. Guided by this viewpoint, Tim Spector is poised to bring a more rational and innovative perspective to the development of GlycanAge’s personalized dietary intervention recommendations.

Furthermore, GlycanAge brings together pioneers in the fields of epigenetics and glycobiology. Among them is Ronald Schnaar, a pioneer in glycobiology who served at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine for 40 years. He holds the title of John Jacob Abel Professor of Pharmacology, serves as the head of the Schnaar Laboratory, and was the recipient of the 2014 Karl Meyer Award. Dr. Vlatka Zoldoš is a Professor at the Faculty of Science, University of Zagreb, and leads the Epigenetics Laboratory within the Department of Molecular Biology. Her primary research focuses on the epigenetics of protein glycosylation, as well as the design, construction, and application of CRISPR/dCas9-based molecular tools for epigenetic editing.

As early as 2013, Tim Spector and Gordan Lauc postulated that glycans are novel biomarkers for chronological and biological age. In one study, they analyzed the immunoglobulin G (IgG) glycosylation profiles of 5,117 individuals from four European populations and found that IgG glycosylation exhibits highly complex patterns of change with age.

Several IgG glycan structures (including FA2B, FA2G2, and FA2BG2) undergo significant changes with age. The combination of these three glycans can explain up to 58% of the variance in age, far exceeding other biomarkers of biological age, such as telomere length. The residual variation in these glycans is strongly correlated with physiological parameters associated with biological age. Therefore, IgG glycosylation appears to be closely linked to both chronological and biological age.^[1]

In 2022, Gordan Lauc and colleagues pointed out in the article “Heritability of the glycan clock of biological age” that immunoglobulin G (IgG) undergoes post-translational modification through the addition of complex N-glycans, which affects its function and mediates inflammatory responses at multiple levels. The composition of the IgG glycome exhibits a predictable pattern with changes in age and health status, which may be associated with inflammaging. Consequently, a new biomarker of biological aging was developed, namely the glycan aging clock.^[2]

The text particularly emphasizes,The Glycan Aging Clock Is the First Biological Aging Clock Shown by Multiple Studies to Be Potentially Reversible Through Simple Lifestyle Interventions. It can measure changes in glycans within the body over time, thereby estimating an individual's immune health status and biological age.

This clock has been commercialized by GlycanAge and transformed into an aging detection service directly targeting end consumers.

GlycanAge’s glycan aging clock analyzes glycans attached to immunoglobulin G (IgG), the most common antibody in blood. It determines an individual’s biological age by assessing the status of the immune system and inflammation.

Immunoglobulin G (IgG) is the most abundant antibody in serum, and its structural characteristics and effector functions are regulated by glycan attachment. The glycans attached to IgG can shift its function from pro-inflammatory to anti-inflammatory, and vice versa. The human body requires both functional mechanisms to maintain a robust immune system. Furthermore, the balance between these functions reflects the inflammatory status of the immune system, determines overall health, and thereby influences biological age.

Large-scale epidemiological studies have shown that glycans undergo changes more than a decade before the onset of cardiovascular events, hypertension, insulin resistance, or other health issues, and these changes may be influenced by environmental factors such as diet, stress, and exposure to toxins.

GlycanAge’s glycan aging clock determines biological age by measuring chronic inflammation in the body—a metric directly linked to users’ lifestyles. By analyzing glycans, it accurately captures changes in biological age resulting from lifestyle choices, stress, and unforeseen events. “Just as chronological age changes over time, so too does a person’s biological age,” notes Dr. Julija Jurić, a molecular biologist.According to Dr. Julija Jurić, GlycanAge is the first and only glycan-based aging clock.。

According to the GlycanAge website, the GlycanAge glycan aging clock is one of the few validated tests that can respond to interventions and comes with a follow-up health plan. This testing protocol is based on decades of research by the team, more than 100 peer-reviewed scientific papers, and testing on 200,000 individuals (in both scientific trials and commercial applications).

Unlike other biological age tests, GlycanAge not only integrates the effects of genetic, epigenetic, and environmental factors on aging but also reflects the impact of lifestyle interventions.. For example, epigenetic clocks do not respond to caloric restriction or weight loss, whereas GlycanAge does. Research on GlycanAge has demonstrated that lifestyle interventions beneficial to health and anti-aging can measurably reverse glycan aging and alter the results of the GlycanAge glycan aging clock. This makes it an ideal metric for evaluating the efficacy of longevity interventions, as it not only detects the body’s aging level but also continuously tracks whether lifestyle changes remain effective over time.

With the GlycanAge testing service, users receive a GlycanAge at-home test kit, access to a personal dashboard for viewing results and tracking progress, analytical insights into key glycan indices, and the opportunity to consult with GlycanAge physicians for personalized intervention recommendations.

During the specific operational process, users can select a package that suits their needs from various plans and payment options based on tailored recommendations from GlycanAge experts, and they will receive the test kit via express delivery shortly thereafter.

The GlycanAge test obtains user samples via a finger-prick blood test, requiring only four drops of dried blood from the fingertip to generate readings for 27 different glycan structures. To ensure the most accurate measurement of biological age, the company conducts multiple tests on each user sample; therefore, results are available after 3–5 weeks. During the analysis process, GlycanAge compares the individual’s IgG glycan readings with those of a reference population of 100,000 individuals aged 20 to 80 years, thereby determining the user’s actual biological age.

While awaiting the results, users can log in to their accounts and complete their personal profiles to help GlycanAge better understand their individual circumstances and provide optimal recommendations. This also enables users to gain deeper insights into the factors influencing their test results and identify areas for improvement. Once the results are available, GlycanAge will notify users via email, and they can view their results on their personal dashboard.

Moreover,GlycanAge not only tracks generalized aging, similar to DNA methylation clocks, but also predicts future hospitalizations due to a broad spectrum of diseases, including influenza and pneumonia, circulatory system disorders, diabetes, and metabolic diseases., which is also its greatest advantage.

Currently, the GlycanAge glycan aging clock is primarily applied in biohacking and frontier science, health and longevity, and menopause management, with test kits available for global distribution.

However, to date, the glycan aging clock has not undergone extensive clinical validation, and its applicability and accuracy across diverse populations, tissues, and diseases remain to be further investigated. In the future, in-depth exploration of the molecular mechanisms and biological significance of the glycan aging clock is required to elucidate the causal relationships and interactions between glycans and aging.

References:

1.Krištić J, Vučković F, Menni C, et al. Glycans are a novel biomarker of chronological and biological ages[J]. Journals of Gerontology Series A: Biomedical Sciences and Medical Sciences, 2014, 69(7): 779-789.

2.Mijakovac A, Frkatović A, Hanić M, et al. Heritability of the glycan clock of biological age[J]. Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology, 2022, 10: 982609.