Dr. Bill Andrews is the Founder and CEO of Sierra Sciences, a company focused on extending human lifespan and healthspan through telomere maintenance. Telomeres are located at the tips of our chromosomes and have been shown, in thousands of peer-reviewed scientific studies, to function as a biological clock of aging in humans. As telomeres shorten, we age and our health declines.
As a scientist, athlete, and executive, Bill continually pushes boundaries and challenges convention. He has been featured in Popular Science, The Today Show, and numerous documentaries on life extension, including the film The Immortalists, in which he co-stars with Dr. Aubrey de Grey (www.theimmortalists.com/watch). Bill is known for being a scientist first, focusing on rigorous research while allowing others to market the products his company develops.
Bill has worked as a medical researcher in biotechnology since 1981, focusing on cancer, heart disease, and inflammation research, though his passion has always been aging. In the early to mid-1990s, while at Geron Corporation, Bill led the research team that discovered both the RNA and protein components of the human enzyme telomerase. This enzyme prevents telomere shortening in reproductive cells, which explains why children are born biologically young even though they originate from older parental cells. Inducing this enzyme to lengthen telomeres in all cells — not just reproductive cells — in order to reverse aging and age-related health decline is the principal goal of Sierra Sciences.
Sierra Sciences does not conduct animal research, choosing instead to focus primarily on human applications. However, independent laboratories using Sierra Sciences’ technologies have demonstrated in animal models that lengthening telomeres via telomerase can provide significant health benefits, including reversal of age-related decline. An interview by Diane Sawyer describes results from a Harvard animal study (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Np7cR7Z6UGA). Bill has also conducted clinical investigations applying similar technologies in humans.
In 1997, Bill was awarded second place as “National Inventor of the Year” for his cancer research. He earned his Ph.D. in Molecular and Population Genetics from the University of Georgia in 1981. He subsequently served as Senior Scientist at Armos Corporation and Codon Corporation; Director of Molecular Biology at Berlex Biosciences and Geron Corporation; and Director of Technology Development at EOS Biosciences before founding Sierra Sciences in 1999, where he now serves as President & CEO and Chief Scientific Officer. Bill is a named inventor on more than 50 U.S.-issued patents related to telomerase and is the author of numerous peer-reviewed scientific publications.
Bill is also an avid ultramarathon runner. He regularly competes in 50- and 100+ mile races, often finishing at the top of his age group. These demanding races have taken him around the world, from Death Valley to the Himalayas. His running is featured in the documentary The High (www.thehighdoc.com). He considers properly structured endurance exercise to be one of the most effective ways to slow aspects of the aging process. Bill’s ultimate goal is to cure aging — including his own. His personal longevity regimen is unique and based on decades of scientific research.
Bill does not actively seek the public spotlight and participates in media appearances primarily when they support funding for scientific research.
Sierra Sciences’ website includes videos of Bill speaking to both medical and general audiences. He has also written three accessible books explaining telomere biology, a field that is often misunderstood. These books, along with products developed through Sierra Sciences’ research and distributed by marketing partners, are available through the company’s website. Royalties generated from these products help fund ongoing research at Sierra Sciences.