SS-31

Elamipretide is now an approved drug for one rare disease at a specific dose — yet the longevity community researches it at very different, usually lower amounts. The gap between the label and the practice is the story.

They are both mitochondrial peptides, and they are almost opposites — one a natural signal that tells cells to adapt, the other a synthetic molecule that physically stabilizes the membrane. Comparing them is the clearest way to see how many angles mitochondrial medicine really has.

Most mitochondrial strategies work on signaling or fuel. SS-31 does something more structural — it binds the lipid that holds the energy machinery together. In 2025 it became the first mitochondria-targeted drug the FDA has ever approved.