ArticleAging cell2021
Lithium can mildly increase health during ageing but not lifespan in mice.
Article in Aging cell, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 11 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
11 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 17 citations in OpenAlex.
- Exploring accelerated aging as a target of bipolar disorder treatment: A systematic review.Journal of psychiatric research · 2024Pooled it
- Targeting Mitochondria in Aging-Related Diseases: Therapeutic Potential and Obstacles.MedComm · 2026Review
- Low-dose lithium supplementation promotes musculoskeletal and metabolic health in ovariectomized female mice.The Journal of physiology · 2026Article
- No evidence lithium supplementation extends lifespan in male Drosophila melanogaster.Biogerontology · 2026Article
- Review
- Mortality and Lithium-Protective Effects after First-Episode Mania Diagnosis in Bipolar Disorder: A Nationwide Retrospective Cohort Study in Taiwan.Psychotherapy and psychosomatics · 2024Article
- Article
- Article
- Considerations Regarding Public Use of Longevity Interventions.Frontiers in aging · 2022Article
- Review
- Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Lithium is a nutritional trace element, used clinically as an anti-depressant. Preclinically, lithium has neuroprotective effects in invertebrates and mice, and it can also extend lifespan in fission yeast, C. elegans and Drosophila. An inverse correlation of human mortality with the concentration of lithium in tap water suggests a possible, evolutionarily conserved mechanism mediating longevity. Here, we assessed the effects of lithium treatment on lifespan and ageing parameters in mice. Lithium has a narrow therapeutic dose range, and overdosing can severely affect organ health. Within the tolerable dosing range, we saw some mildly positive effects of lithium on health span but not on lifespan.
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.