Semaglutide, the active ingredient in Ozempic and Wegovy, was associated with slower changes in DNA methylation–based “epigenetic clocks” in adults living with HIV in a post hoc analysis of a randomized, placebo-controlled trial. Scientists say larger studies are needed to determine whether these molecular signals translate into meaningful long-term health benefits.
A study published in Nature Communications reports that semaglutide was associated with slower movement of several DNA methylation–based measures of biological aging—often called epigenetic clocks—in adults living with HIV who had HIV-associated lipohypertrophy, a condition involving excess abdominal fat.
Researchers analyzed samples from a previously conducted randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial that enrolled 108 adults with HIV-associated lipohypertrophy. Roughly half received weekly semaglutide injections and the rest received placebo. The team assessed “epigenetic clocks,” which estimate aspects of biological aging using patterns of DNA methylation.
In the analysis, participants assigned to semaglutide showed slower biological aging across multiple epigenetic clocks, including measures linked to inflammation and organ-system health. The study reported a 9% slower pace of aging on the DunedinPACE measure and a significant slowing in PCGrimAge, a clock associated with processes tied to age-related disease and all-cause mortality risk. The work lists Michael J. Corley of the University of California San Diego as first author.
The researchers also pointed to a related pilot study published in npj Aging that examined semaglutide over 24 weeks in people with HIV and metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD), sometimes referred to as fatty liver disease. That report found that 42% of participants showed slowing on DunedinPACE, and it also reported signals of slowing in other aging-related measures in subsets of participants.
Scientists cautioned that the findings do not establish semaglutide as an “anti-aging” medication. Corley said the results suggest a signal that the drug may slow some biological processes associated with aging, but emphasized that larger and longer studies are needed to confirm the results, understand how durable any changes are, and determine whether molecular aging markers correspond to clinical outcomes.
