Valter Longo is an Italian-American biogerontologist and cell biologist. He has received multiple awards for his research on anti-aging and fast-mimicking diets that help extend life and prevent diseases such as cancer and cardiovascular disease.
Wiki/Biography
Valter Longo was born on Monday, October 9, 1967, in Genoa, Italy (55 years old as of 2022). His zodiac sign is Libra. Walter completed his primary education in Genoa, Italy. After graduating from his sophomore year (10th grade), he decided to become a rock guitarist and moved to Chicago, USA. While there, he joined the U.S. Army Reserves to help pay the bills. He attended recruit training at Fort Knox. Later, he was admitted to the University of North Texas School of Music to study jazz music.
Valter Longo played guitar as a teenager
As a result of his training in the military, he decided to study nutrition and longevity; he pursued a Bachelor of Science degree at the University of Texas in 1992, majoring in biochemistry. In 1992, he joined the Caloric Restriction Laboratory at UCLA to study caloric restriction and immune system aging. In 1997, he completed his PhD in biochemistry under the supervision of Professor Joan Valentine at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), studying antioxidant enzymes and anti-aging genes. He completed postdoctoral training in Alzheimer’s disease neurobiology under the guidance of Professor Caleb Finch at the University of Southern California.
Valter D Longo in his laboratory during his Ph.D.
appearance
Height (approximately): 6 feet
Weight (approximately): 70kg
Hair color: black
Eye color: black
family
Valter Longo’s parents were Calabrian.
Parents and siblings
Not much information is available about Walter’s parents and siblings.
wife and children
Not much information is available about Walter’s wife and children.
Biogerontologists and cell biologists
Anti-aging research
In 1997, after receiving his PhD in antioxidant enzymes and anti-aging genes, Walter became a faculty member at the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology. He is a member of the USC Biology of Aging Program and director of the USC Longevity Institute.
USC Longevity Institute
Walter’s research focuses on understanding the basic mechanisms of aging in simple organisms and mice, and how these mechanisms can be applied to humans. The Longo lab has identified genetic pathways that control aging in simple organisms and shown that deactivating these pathways can slow the progression of a variety of diseases in mice and humans.
Valter Longo talks to media about his anti-aging experiments
Walter’s lab develops dietary and genetic interventions that protect healthy cells while making cancer cells more susceptible to chemotherapy. These interventions are being tested in many hospitals across the United States and Europe.
Quick copycat diet
Longo’s Fasting Mimicking Diet (FMD) is a meal plan that is low in calories and protein, with moderate amounts of carbohydrates and fats.
Longo’s conversation with Mediterranean people who follow a healthy diet based on the eating habits of their ancestors
It is designed to replicate the effects of a five-day water fast while still providing the body with essential nutrients. The diet, developed by Longo at the University of Southern California, is designed to suppress the same metabolic pathways as fasting without triggering the body’s growth response. The fasting-mimicking diet is a trademark of L-Nutra, a company partly owned by Longo and financially supported by the University of Southern California. Dr. Longo has published a book called The Macrobiotic Diet, which discusses the Mimic Fast Diet in detail.
longevity diet book
He initiated the USC Davis School of Gerontology’s first study abroad program, a summer course in Italy on the nutrition and genetics of aging
Awards, Honors, Achievements
- 2010 Nathan Shock Lecture Award from the National Institute on Aging
- In 2013, the American Federation for Aging Research (AFAR) awarded Vincent Cristofalo the Rising Star Award in Aging Research.
- 2016, Friedrich Merz Visiting Professor
- 2016 Jubilee Professorship at Chalmers University of Technology Gothenburg, Västergötaland, Sweden.
- 2016 Glenn Prize in Aging Research
- In 2018, he was named one of the 50 most influential people in healthcare by Time magazine for his research on fasting-mimicking diets as a way to improve health and prevent disease.
Facts/Trivia
- Walter’s full name is Walter D. Longo.
- Walter’s hobby is playing guitar. Whenever he visited the elderly or sick, he would play guitar for them.
Valter Longo plays guitar for patients
- On July 27, 2011, he appeared in the ninth episode of the second season of Morgan Freeman’s Through the Wormhole. In this episode he discusses his anti-aging research, saying,
I found a way to extend the life of baker’s yeast up to 10 times its normal lifespan. I then started working on the genetic equivalent in mice and found that I could double their normal lifespan. “
- On December 6, 2016, he gave a TEDx talk titled “Fasting: Awakening Revival from Within.”
- Valter runs two foundations: the Fondazione Valter Longo Foundation in Milan, Italy, and the Create Cures Foundation in Los Angeles, California, USA.
- He donates all profits from the sale of his books to research and innovation projects.
Categories: Biography
Source: HIS Education