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Longevity

FOXO4-DRI

Experimental senolytic peptide with cell and mouse evidence, but no established human efficacy or safety.

L2Animal / lab studiesResearch / unapproved supplyPreclinicalPeptide analogue
How settled this rating is:
low confidence in the current evidence rating
Routes studied:
Not established
Also known as:
FOXO4 D-retro-inverso peptide, FOXO4-p53 interfering peptide, FOXO4 DRI
Last reviewed:
2026-10-11
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Evidence passport

FOXO4-DRI

A one-screen evidence identity for this compound. These fields describe research maturity, confidence and legal status. They are not a safety guarantee, efficacy percentage or recommendation.

Reviewed 2026-10-11
Evidence level
L2Animal / lab studies
Confidence
Low confidence in rating
Regulatory status
Research / unapproved supply
Development status
Preclinical

Evidence strength

Human efficacy evidence0 of 100 evidence strength

Higher = more and better-quality human evidence. It does not mean the effect is bigger or that the compound works for you.

Human safety evidence3 of 100 evidence strength

Higher = more mature, better-documented human safety data. It does not mean the compound is safer than one with a lower number.

The 0-100 values rate the strength and maturity of evidence, not how effective or safe the compound is.

Evidence base
Mostly animal and laboratory research
Furthest established stage
Preclinical
Human research maturity
Preclinical: laboratory and mouse experiments
Source curation
Sources fully curated

Routes recorded

Most of this evidence comes from animals and cells

The supporting research for FOXO4-DRI is predominantly preclinical (Level 1–2). That is a legitimate starting point for science and a poor basis for personal decisions. Human results are not simply a scaled-up version of mouse results.

Overview

Human efficacy evidence strength0 of 100 evidence strength

Higher = more and better-quality human evidence. It does not mean the effect is bigger or that the compound works for you.

Preclinical (animal / lab) evidence strength45 of 100 evidence strength

Higher = more animal, tissue or cell research. Preclinical results are a starting point, not proof of a human benefit.

Human safety evidence strength3 of 100 evidence strength

Higher = more mature, better-documented human safety data. It does not mean the compound is safer than one with a lower number.

Evidence for the assessed benefit

L2Animal / lab studiesLow confidence in rating

FOXO4-p53 disruption and senescent-cell apoptosis in experimental systems; not human anti-ageing efficacy.

Research maturity, benefit evidence, safety and approval are different questions.

How to read these scores

Every number here rates the evidence, not the compound. They are editorial 0-100 strength ratings, not percentages, and not a rating out of five stars.

  • Human efficacy evidence strength — Higher = more and better-quality human evidence. It does not mean the effect is bigger or that the compound works for you.
  • Preclinical evidence strength — Higher = more animal, tissue or cell research. Preclinical results are a starting point, not proof of a human benefit.
  • Human safety evidence strength — Higher = more mature, better-documented human safety data. It does not mean the compound is safer than one with a lower number. A score of 80 does not mean “80% safe”.
  • Evidence level (L0-L5) — the strongest type of study behind the compound, from anecdote (L0) to large replicated human trials (L5). It is a description of the study evidence, not a quality, safety or recommendation rating.
  • Confidence — how likely we think it is that this rating changes as new research lands. Low confidence means the picture is unsettled, not that the compound is bad.

None of these ratings is medical advice, a safety guarantee, or a recommendation to use anything. How we grade evidence.

How far human research has progressed: Preclinical: laboratory and mouse experiments

Routes & formulations

Research administration in animals does not establish a safe or effective human route.

Route availability is not evidence of efficacy, and evidence from one route does not transfer to another. The Registry never provides dosing or sourcing information.

Peptide lifecycle

  1. Discovery

  2. Preclinical

    Furthest established stage

  3. Phase I

  4. Phase II

  5. Phase III

  6. Approved

Preclinical

What it is

An engineered D-retro-inverso peptide intended to interfere with the interaction between FOXO4 and the tumour-suppressor protein p53 in senescent cells. FOXO4-DRI is not the FOXO4 protein itself.

What people claim

  • Selectively eliminates senescent cells
  • Reverses ageing
  • Improves kidney function and physical fitness
  • Extends human lifespan

What the evidence actually says

The 2017 Baar et al. Cell study reported senescent-cell apoptosis in laboratory systems and improvements in selected functional measures in aged and progeroid mice. These are meaningful preclinical observations, not clinical evidence of rejuvenation, human lifespan extension or human safety. No qualifying controlled human FOXO4-DRI outcome study is curated.

Useful next reads based on this compound — not recommendations.

Human evidence

  • No qualifying human clinical efficacy or safety outcomes established for FOXO4-DRI. Experiments on cultured human cells are laboratory, not human clinical, evidence.

Preclinical evidence

  • Baar et al., Cell (2017): FOXO4-p53 interference and apoptosis in senescent cell cultures.
  • Baar et al., Cell (2017): improvements in fur density, renal-function measures and fitness-related observations in mouse ageing models; species-specific findings.

Animal and cell findings are Level 1–2 evidence.

Mechanism and pathways

  • Disrupts the FOXO4-p53 interaction in experimental senescent cells.
  • The proposed downstream effect is p53-mediated apoptosis of some senescent cells; selectivity and consequences in humans are unknown.

Safety and unknowns

  • No established human dose, route, pharmacokinetic profile or short- and long-term safety dataset.
  • Interfering with p53-associated pathways raises mechanistic questions about effects on healthy cells and tumour surveillance; clinical risk has not been quantified.
  • Research-market product identity, purity and sterility cannot be inferred from the published molecule.

Cancer relevance

This section covers questions raised by how the compound works in the body, plus anything regulators and trial teams keep an eye on. It is not a statement that this compound causes cancer — for most compounds here, no human data exist in either direction.

Theoretical / mechanistic concern only

FOXO4-DRI interacts with p53-associated cell-death biology; human tumour-suppression effects and cancer risks have not been established.

Regulatory status

Regulatory decisions apply to specific jurisdictions, products, formulations and indications. An approval elsewhere is not automatically an approval in your country.

Check the regulatory note and linked primary sources for jurisdiction-specific details.

Experimental research peptide; no approved human therapeutic use has been established. No compound-specific interventional human outcome trial is curated.

Evidence grade

L2Animal / lab studiesLow confidence in rating

Documented compound-specific animal or laboratory outcome findings, without qualifying human evidence for the assessed benefit.

What would change our rating?

  • Independently replicated preclinical outcomes and validated selectivity.
  • Registered, ethically conducted human pharmacology and safety studies.
  • Controlled human efficacy outcomes with clinically meaningful endpoints.

References and sources

Source transparency

A provenance snapshot of this profile. Counts show what kinds of sources are cited, not how much scientific weight each source deserves.

Sources fully curated
Last editorial review
2026-10-11
Recently reviewed · 5 days ago
Linked curated sources
2
Sources still pending
0
External specialist reviews
0
None recorded for this profile
Peer-reviewed: 2

Review provenance

Registry editorial review: Colin Jackson-White, creator and editor, who is not a doctor or clinician. External specialist review is credited only when a named reviewer has completed a review of this exact profile.

Literature-discovery and AI tools may help locate or challenge candidate evidence, but they are not counted as evidence sources here. Registry judgements are tied to the underlying papers, trial records, regulator documents and official study records.

Source hierarchy: regulatory documents and trial registries first, peer-reviewed work next, sponsor material flagged as non-independent. We never use supplier or clinic marketing as evidence, and where a verified source has not yet been curated we say so rather than inventing one.

Evidence change history

These entries record changes to our assessment of the published evidence — not changes to the compound itself.

No recorded changes yet. Baseline position set on 2026-10-11.

Related claims we’ve checked — in full

Claim verdict

Longevity

Not supported as wordedL2Animal / lab studies

“FOXO4-DRI has been proven to reverse ageing in humans.”

This verdict applies to the exact claim above. It is not a verdict on the compound overall, a safety guarantee, or a recommendation to use it.

Registry verdict

Unsupported: improvements in mouse ageing models are not evidence of human rejuvenation.

Why this verdict

  • The key 2017 study tested senescent cells in culture and outcomes in aged or progeroid mice.
  • No qualifying human FOXO4-DRI clinical outcome trial demonstrates reversal of ageing or longer lifespan.
  • The existence of a senolytic mechanism does not establish a safe human treatment.

Claim evidence map

Sources are mapped to this exact claim. Appearance here does not mean every source supports it.

1 mapped source

Claim verdict

Senolytics

Partly supportedL2Animal / lab studies

“FOXO4-DRI selectively kills senescent cells.”

This verdict applies to the exact claim above. It is not a verdict on the compound overall, a safety guarantee, or a recommendation to use it.

Registry verdict

Supported in selected experimental cell systems, not established in people.

Why this verdict

  • The original study observed FOXO4-p53 interference and senescent-cell apoptosis in cultured cells.
  • Mouse experiments provide additional preclinical support, but human tissue selectivity and clinical benefit remain untested.
  • The wording is misleading if it implies a proven human intervention.

Claim evidence map

Sources are mapped to this exact claim. Appearance here does not mean every source supports it.

1 mapped source

Claim verdict

Longevity

Not supported as wordedL2Animal / lab studies

“FOXO4-DRI restores kidney function and fitness in humans.”

This verdict applies to the exact claim above. It is not a verdict on the compound overall, a safety guarantee, or a recommendation to use it.

Registry verdict

Unsupported for humans: reported renal and fitness-related improvements came from mouse models.

Why this verdict

  • The original research reported selected renal and functional outcomes in aged and progeroid mice.
  • Human clinical benefits, effective administration and safety have not been established.

Claim evidence map

Sources are mapped to this exact claim. Appearance here does not mean every source supports it.

1 mapped source