Leonard Guarente
Novartis Professor of Biology · Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Department of Biology
Cambridge, MA, United States
Impact
Leonard Guarente is the Novartis Professor of Biology at MIT, where his laboratory operated from 1982 to 2025; according to the lab website he continues to teach at MIT and to pursue ageing-related research. His research on the genetic and molecular basis of ageing, first in model organisms and later in mammals and humans, is best known for work on sirtuins. His group showed that SIR2 controls ageing in yeast cells and that SIR2 is an NAD-dependent histone deacetylase, linking NAD+ metabolism to ageing. It also reported that increased dosage of a sir-2 gene extends lifespan in C. elegans. Later work examined the mammalian homologue SIRT1 in metabolism, fat mobilisation, neuromuscular degeneration and brain ageing, including the rate of brain ageing as a risk factor for Alzheimer's disease together with APOE4. He is Chief Scientist of Elysium Health, a consumer health company that sells an NAD+ supplement and announced a USD 40 million Series C equity and debt financing in December 2019. For the longevity field his work is a reference point for sirtuin and NAD+ research and its commercial translation into supplements.
Metrics
- USD 40M raised by Elysium Health as of 2026-09-23 source ↗
Research output
250 works · 73,373 citations · h-index 119 OpenAlex ↗
Selected publications
- Transcriptional silencing and longevity protein Sir2 is an NAD-dependent histone deacetylase ↗ 2000 · 3,533 citations
- hSIR2SIRT1 Functions as an NAD-Dependent p53 Deacetylase ↗ 2001 · 2,677 citations
- The SIR2/3/4 complex and SIR2 alone promote longevity in Saccharomyces cerevisiae by two different mechanisms ↗ 1999 · 2,287 citations
- Negative Control of p53 by Sir2α Promotes Cell Survival under Stress ↗ 2001 · 2,081 citations
- Sirt1 promotes fat mobilization in white adipocytes by repressing PPAR-γ ↗ 2004 · 1,960 citations
Research funding
50 NIH awards · USD 17M total NIH RePORTER ↗
- Cell Senescence in Saccharomyces Cerevisiae National Institute on Aging · 2005 · USD 466K
- Cell Senescence in Saccharomyces Cerevisiae National Institute on Aging · 2010 · USD 462K
- Cell Senescence in Saccharomyces Cerevisiae National Institute on Aging · 2006 · USD 462K
- Cell Senescence in Saccharomyces Cerevisiae National Institute on Aging · 2004 · USD 460K
- Cell Senescence in Saccharomyces Cerevisiae National Institute on Aging · 2011 · USD 458K
Links
Research fields
Sources & review · profile last updated 2026-09-29
- https://biology.mit.edu/profile/leonard-p-guarente/ 2026-09-23
- https://guarentelab.mit.edu/ 2026-09-23
- https://www.elysiumhealth.com/blogs/leadership-team/leonard-guarente-phd 2026-09-23
- https://www.elysiumhealth.com/blogs/leadership-team/eric-marcotulli 2026-09-23
- https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/elysium-health-announces-40-million-series-c-financing-led-by-gisev-family-office-300979014.html 2026-09-23
- https://www.elysiumhealth.com/pages/mission 2026-09-24
- https://archivana.com/elysium-health/ktla-interviews-elysiums-leonard-guarente-phd-mktzm829 2026-09-24