November 3rd, 2025
Proteins are largely quite delicate structures dependent on being manufactured and correctly folded and localized inside a cell. Thus no-one tries to make recombinant proteins or deliver them as a therapy for the vast majority of proteins. The exceptions are those proteins robust enough to be secreted by a cell and circulate in blood and other fluids in the body. In that case one can develop means of manufacture and build a recombinant protein that can be injected as a basis for therapy, assuming that more of that protein is a desirable goal. So far as I am aware it is unusual to find a protein that can survive oral administration and the harsh environment of the gastrointestinal tract, and then enter circulation to produce the same beneficial effects that the natively manufactured protein is capable of achieving. An energetic portion of the research community is actively engaged in trying to find ways to enable proteins to survive oral administration.
A fair amount has been written on the topic of BPIFB4 and its effects on life span and cardiovascular disease in recent years. The longevity-associated variant of the protein both reduces inflammation and reduces the impact of aging on the ability of blood vessels to contract and dilate. Exploration continues to try to fully understand its effects on the complex regulation of the vascular system. While the longevity-associated variant of BPIFB4 was discovered in humans, researchers have demonstrated in a number of studies that it produces benefits in aged mice. Today's open access paper on this topic is largely interesting because the authors used oral administration of a recombinant longevity-associated variant of BPIFB4. This is not the expected next step after earlier success in mice with BPIFB4 gene therapies, precisely because, as mentioned above, very few proteins can be delivered orally.
