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How embarrassing it can be to forget someone’s name during a social event! With this relatable anecdote, Tony Wyss-Coray, Professor of Neurology and Neurological Sciences at Stanford Medicine, opened the 18th Landsteiner Lecture on May 12, 2025. His talk, titled “Young Blood for Old Brains and the Quest to Slow Aging”, immediately captivated the audience. Wyss-Coray used the story to illustrate a universal truth: our brains inevitably decline with age. While such slips are rare at 40, they become far more common at 60 and beyond. And yet, intriguingly, about 30 percent of people show remarkable resilience against cognitive aging. How can that be? And what role does blood play in all this?

This thought-provoking introduction set the stage for an exceptional lecture. With remarkable clarity and charisma, Wyss-Coray guided an audience of over 400 scientists and laypeople through the frontiers of aging research. His work on the influence of blood-derived factors on aging—both of the whole body and individual organs—is nothing short of groundbreaking. What once sounded like science fiction, or even mythology, has now become scientific reality: in mice, the transfusion of young blood can rejuvenate aging brains and other organs.

Moreover, the analysis of blood can now predict the biological age of organs with impressive precision. Yet, while modern technology allows us to analyze thousands of blood compounds simultaneously, routine medical checkups typically examine only a few dozen. The untapped potential is enormous—both for early detection of abnormally fast-aging organs and for the future development of therapies that might slow or even reverse age-related decline. While Wyss-Coray firmly dismissed the idea of a full “Benjamin Button” reversal, he made clear that at the cellular and molecular level, real rejuvenation is possible.

“We could monitor people when they’re still healthy—and intervene before disease sets in,” Wyss-Coray concluded, leaving the audience visibly inspired. His outstanding lecture sparked a wave of curiosity, with numerous questions continuing well into the evening. At the post-lecture reception, attendees had the opportunity to personally engage with Wyss-Coray in a lively and informal exchange.

This year’s Landsteiner Lecture was beautifully framed by a performance of the Nexus String Quartet, who presented a selection of works by Johann Strauss Jr., celebrating the 200th anniversary of the composer’s birth—a perfect musical complement to an intellectually and emotionally enriching evening.

We warmly thank Tony Wyss-Coray for sharing his visionary research and making this year’s Landsteiner Lecture a truly outstanding experience!
 

About the CeMM Landsteiner Lecture Series

The CeMM Landsteiner Lecture series is named in honor of Karl Landsteiner, the Viennese scientist who was awarded the Nobel Prize for his discovery of blood groups. Each year, a distinguished speaker is invited—carefully selected by the CeMM Faculty—for their outstanding molecular research and its significant impact on medicine.

From 2007 to 2018, the lecture was held in the magnificent 18th-century frescoed festive hall of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, a venue where Haydn and Beethoven once premiered their works. In 2019, it moved to the impressive House of Industry in Vienna, and during the pandemic, it was held in an online format. Since 2022, the lecture has returned to its historic setting at the Austrian Academy of Sciences.