It’s notable when a scientific study reaches the decade mark, but when the topic is the healthy ageing of people who have lived 10 times as long, it just means there’s still a lot more to learn.

This month, researchers participating in the Cilento Initiative on Ageing Outcomes or CIAO study will gather in Acciaroli (Pollica-Cilento), Salerno, Italy, to review a decade of work and plan their next steps. Launched in 2016, the CIAO study seeks to identify key factors (biological, psychological and social) that promote healthy ageing and extreme longevity.

The Natural Park of the Cilento region in southern Italy is home to roughly 300 residents who are more than 100 years old and in robust health. The broader region is notable for the long lives of its residents. It was the original source of research for Ancel Keys, the American physiologist who studied the influence of diet on health and first promoted the benefits of the Mediterranean diet.

Scientists hope to reveal the longevity secrets of the Cilento region using an array of tools to measure metabolomics, biomes, cognitive dysfunction and protein biomarkers for risk of heart disease, Alzheimer’s, kidney disease and cancer, along with psychological, social and lifestyle surveys.

“There is no single secret to living a long, healthy life,” said Salvatore DI Somma, MD, the study’s lead Italian investigator, founder of Great Health Science and symposium co-chair. “It is many secrets, most of which we are only beginning to understand and more importantly, learn how they might be applied to the well-being of everybody. The remarkable centenarians in our study are leading the way.”

The CIAO study is a multi-institution collaboration that includes Sanford Burnham Prebys, an independent, nonprofit biomedical research institute in San Diego, the Sanford Stem Cell Institute at University of California San Diego, University La Sapienza in Rome and Great Health Science, a network of public and private research organisations based in Rome, Italy.

The May 22-23 symposium, officially called the “CIAO Study: A decade of science on healthy aging, stem cells and the revealed secrets of longevity,” will feature a series of scientists and physicians describing their work and findings, from general demographic and epidemiological aspects to deeper dives into brain cell aging, the regenerative powers of stem cells and RNA biology.

“Understanding how we age and how we might age better is a timeless pursuit,” said David Brenner, MD, president and CEO of Sanford Burnham Prebys and co-chair of the symposium. “Ten years in, with the benefit of new and emerging technologies and global collaborations, we’ve come a long way. It’s important to look at where we are now and what our key questions and steps will be in the next 10 years.”

One current CIAO project leverages genetic, epigenetic, transcriptomic, metabolic, proteomic and environmental analyses to identify key contributors to extreme longevity. Supported by the Sanford Stem Cell Institute at UC San Diego, researchers are using induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC) derived from the centenarians to model age-related and metabolic stresses in human 3d organoids.

“This study will provide new insights into the development of regenerative medicine strategies for promoting healthy ageing and treating age-related conditions,” said Tatiana Kisseleva, MD, PhD, professor of surgery at UC San Diego School of Medicine and director of the Sanford Stem Cell Fitness and Space Medicine Centre.  Preliminary findings are expected to be presented at the symposium.