I’ve written before about one project at Google– the one aimed at determining why folks become terrorists.  The basic concept is to determine why people join gangs and how that is similar to folks joining terrorist cells.  In so doing, we should be able to find ways to stop folks from becoming terrorists. This venture is led by one smart young chap- Jared Cohen- who got his start in the Condy Rice’s State Department and stayed on under Hillary Clinton’s tenure, before  heading up this new gig.

Now, another gig from Google is seeing the light of day. Calico. No, it’s not a cat (but it could be a play on our belief they have nine lives), but a shortened version of “California Life Company”. Calico is a new venture aimed at finding ways for humans to live longer,  (OK, to have us live forever.) Calico was a Google project under the tutelage of Larry Page, the co-founder and CEO of Google. Larry has convinced Dr. Arthur Levinson to invest- and become the CEO of the venture. (Levinson has been the CEO of Genentech [he resigned as CEO but remainsedthe Chairman, as soon as Roche took over the firm] and became the Chairman of Apple after Jobs’ death; he’s also been a Director at Google.)

To be honest, the question of aging – or is that anti-aging- is probably not what we first think about when we we hear the term.   More likely, it won’t be some drug that stops our cells from decaying. (Sorry, Dr. Huckster- that potion doesn’t fly!] After all, slowing or preventing the activity of various diseases may be the real key to letting us live longer – or forever. And, you can bet if Calico finds a drug or process to let folks live five or ten years longer, it would make it a most profitable venture!

This is not the first time companies have been started to deal with this issue. Elixir Pharmaceuticals tried to preclude the diseases of diabetes, obesity, among other diseases. In so doing, they hoped to discern the intracacies of the interactions of our genes and enzymes with the aging process, thereby precluding metabolic disease from terminating our lives. It’s IPO (initial public offering) was withdrawn in 2007, and the company inked a deal with Novartis to be acquired- that seems to have never occurred. (It looks like the firm has folded.)

Or, Sirtis Pharmaceuticals in Cambridge (MA). Started in 2004 by Dr. David Sinclair (Harvard) and Cristoph Westphal (venture capitalist); it went public in 2007. One year later, GlaxoSmithKline bought the firm for $720 million, when it was still working on sirtuins (enzymes that were thought to mediate calorie restriction benefits). But, in 2010, their first drug (a resveratrol formulation) was found to have adverse effects, and the entity was shut down by the acquirer. (Amgen and Pfizer could not find any benefits of reservatrol in their recent studies.)

(Google (and/or Larry Page) is not the first tech giant to have this idea, either. Larry Ellison (Oracle’s CEO) pumped $ 445 million into his own medical foundation that funds research on age-related diseases. And, Peter Thiel (the founder of PayPal) provided the substantial- but lesser- sum of $ 3.5 million to the Methuselah Foundation, which funds scientists working to solve the aging problem.)

That could be why Calico won’t attempt to operate as a conventional firm, with its own employees. Instead, it will be closer in operation to that of an Institute, funding basic research on the causes and mechanisms of aging at various academic facilities. But, it could quickly become more like the Howard Hughes Medical Institute with its own internal and external researchers. But, for now, Levinson will be the only Calico employee.  You should also know that Levinson has a well-deserved reputation for fostering researchers, and letting them pursue their interests fully (from his Genentech days).

One big problem Calico faces is the FDA (US Food and Drug Administration).  While you and I think aging is a disease, the FDA has no disease called “aging”. That means getting drug approvals will require a specific approved sickness in mind or the drug will never go anywhere.  On the other hand, one Calico success could make the FDA change its mind about “aging”.

We also must recognize that medicine is actually heavily involved in information science, just like Google is.   Data – big data- is collected and analyzed from vast numbers of patients every day.  So, one approach for Calico could be to examine the genetic makeup of those who live much longer than the rest of us.  It could also harness information science to discern which chemicals (drugs) an affect what cellular process as part of its decision process to develop new drugs.   So, Google’s computing power will be an important asset to Calico.  Another asset will be partnerships with other drug firms. (Levinson is on the Roche Board of Directors, as I mentioned above.)

We don’t know if this firm is funded with $ 1 million – or tens of millions. Or, if there are other investors besides the two founders.  But, the one other thing we do know- Calico won’t have that new company crush to turn a profit right away.

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