Most dog owners would likely love more time with their pets. The average dog's lifespan is 10 to 15 years depending on the breed, according to the American Kennel Club. Large dogs generally have a shorter lifespan, the organization says.
Loyal, a biotech company, is working on a drug that could extend the lifespan of large dogs by at least one full year.
The company announced this week that the Food and Drug Administration Center for Veterinary Medicine has approved the Reasonable Expectation of Effectiveness section of its application for LOY-001. That means the FDA agrees with the company that it's reasonable to believe the drug will be effective. It's just one step before getting "conditional approval," which the company hopes to receive in 2026. That would allow the company to begin marketing the drug for purchase.
“We’re going to be going for claiming at least one year of healthy life span extension,” Celine Halioua, the founder and chief executive of Loyal, told The New York Times.
How does the drug work? Loyal claims LOY-001 can reduce the growth-promoting hormone IGF-1 to the level of small dogs, which generally live longer than bigger breeds.
“At Loyal, we see the short lifespan of big dogs not as inevitable, but as a genetically-associated disease caused by historical artificial selection, and therefore amenable to targeting and treatment with a drug," said Brennen McKenzie, Loyal’s director of veterinary medicine.
