Dr. Dominik Duscher is a specialist in plastic and aesthetic surgery and owner of the Longevity Center Munich. in 2020, he landed a national bestseller with his book "Ageing can be cured: Staying young with the power of the three cell skills". The scientist and entrepreneur recently joined the MoleQlar family as a member of the Scientific Advisory Board. To help you get to know our newest team member a little better, we met up with him to talk about longevity and his visions for a healthy future.
MoleQlar: Hello Dominik! As a "trained" plastic surgeon, how did you come across the topic of longevity?
Dominik Duscher: I spent three years at Stanford University after medical school and during residency doing research in regenerative medicine, wound healing research, stem cell biology and cell signaling pathways. It was a really important time in my life because I was already a trained physician but had little practical experience. In fact, at the age of 25, I wasn't ready at all. So I had to and was allowed to learn a lot very quickly there.
This is how I learned how to do science at a top international level; nothing else would have been possible there.
So I was in the lab day and night, whether the sun was shining outside or not. That was quite an experience! I was the youngest researcher in my department of plastic surgery at the time. Stem cell biology was always a special focus of mine and I was particularly interested in stem cell dysfunction. Stem cells don't work as well when they are older, they have problems with regenerative functionality. I recognized this as a key element of many things that subsequently follow on from this.
So if you have a stem cell deficiency, that's going to negatively affect a lot of other things as well.
The organism is an organized system and it is clear that if the cell as the smallest building block causes problems, this must also cause problems in the entire system. Stanford ultimately laid the foundation for everything I do today.
MoleQlar: You are the owner of the Longevity Center Munich - the first center for institutionalized longevity medicine. What can a layperson imagine by this and what services do you specifically offer as a longevity doctor?
Dominik Duscher : It has become clear that everything to do with genetics is not as set in stone as was long thought. A lot of predetermination ideas had been put into genetics. Now it has only recently been discovered in longevity research and regenerative medicine that genetics is the hardware above which lies another level of software that directs the genome: epigenetics (epi, Greek on, over). It controls gene expression, whether genes are switched on or not.
Researchers are increasingly recognizing the role of epigenetics in human growth, development, disease and health. In particular, biological cell age can serve as an epigenetically determined marker of cell health and can also be used to monitor therapies, such as personalized recommendations for nutrition and health products.
This means that therapies can be tailored and tailored to individual needs. Such an approach makes it possible for the first time to track the development of (cellular) health and improve lifestyle in a targeted manner.
With a sophisticated nutritional supplement regime or prescription drugs, we at my institute lower the biological age and thus reduce the risk profile for age-associated diseases. I'm not a big fan of hormonal intervention. I don't like to interfere with hormone regulation unless I absolutely have to and there is a lot of suffering.
I have a different system and different concepts, whereby I try to design an individual, viable path that can also be implemented.
If someone often has to eat out in the evening, I can't take their dinner away, for example.
MoleQlar: You also work at the University of Tübingen as Program Director for Applied Regenerative Medicine. What is your research focus there?
Dominik Duscher : In my academic work, I focus on cell biology in the context of ageing and diabetes, but I also have research projects that revolve around breast cancer and especially its recurrence.
MoleQlar: You recently joined the MoleQlar team. What was the deciding factor for you to join? Why MoleQlar and not another company with a similar focus?
Dominik Duscher : In my opinion, there is no alternative to MoleQlar in German-speaking countries.
The quality of the products had already convinced me as a Longevity physician and long before I joined the MoleQlar team, I always recommended the products to my patients.
Therefore, it was a great pleasure and honor for me to become a scientific advisor.
MoleQlar: What are your responsibilities as a Scientific Advisor at MoleQlar?
Dominik Duscher : I am primarily responsible for the development of new products. Together with the MoleQlar team, I am working on expanding the product range outside of the nutritional supplements division and will help to make a personalized form of longevity intervention available via MoleQlar.
MoleQlar: What advice can you give to people who want to do something for their health and longevity? What is the best first step?
Dominik Duscher : The basis of all longevity is lifestyle. Even the best products will not help if the right emphasis is not placed here. A solid fasting regime and an adequate training program are the basic building blocks that can then be effectively built upon with individually selected nutritional supplements.
MoleQlar: What is your personal key to a long and healthy life? Do you have a so-called longevity routine that you cherish and nurture?
Dominik Duscher : Longevity medicine is ultra-personalized precision medicine for the prevention of age-related diseases, but also for performance enhancement. I have already mentioned that the basis of all efforts to achieve a healthy, long life is lifestyle. I certainly have my weaknesses here due to a relatively stressful everyday life, but I keep to a consistent 16:8 fasting regime.
I always skip breakfast and start the day with lunch.
In addition, of course, I try to supplement the other levels of the longevity pyramid with targeted food supplements. Here I am a fan of NAD boosters but also other substances such as Spermidine , Quercetin und Glucosamin . I not only recommend Metformin to my patients, but am also convinced of its benefits myself. After all, I was able to reduce my biological age to 25.6 years, a good 10 years below my passport age.
Thank you for the interview!
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