Morus alba leaf extract increases lifespan in Caenorhabditis elegans

All parts of Morus alba offer great therapeutic potential, but are they beneficial to the whole organism, particularly with respect to aging? We evaluated the effect of an ethanol extract of mulberry leaves on the model organism Caenorhabditis elegans. The extract significantly extended mean lifespan by 17% from 17.6 to 20.6 days. This compares well to the effect of ethosuximide, a drug used to treat seizures in humans, which increased adult lifespan by 35%. This novel activity suggests that mulberry leaves have the potential to retard the aging process.