A little-known island in the Caribbean is quickly becoming a mecca for the ultra-wealthy looking to ‘live forever’ thanks to its non-existent laws around experimental gene therapy.
Roatán, which is located 40 miles off the northern coast of Honduras with easy flights from the US, is home to a charter city called Prospera.
In the futuristic metropolis, which is the brainchild of Venezuelan-born wealth fund manager Erick Brimen, there are single-digit tax rates, Bitcoin has been adopted as a unit of currency and there are no regulations around various cutting-edge, but non-approved, medical practices.
One of the treatments on offer from the Minicircle clinic – as tested by biohacker Bryan Johnson – is follistatin gene therapy.
This treatment, which is not approved by the FDA and is illegal in the US, currently costs $25,000 and it involves a simple injection of DNA molecules that encourage the body to repair itself.
The effects are said to last for one to two years.
Minicircle, a biotech startup registered in Delaware, prides itself on being one of the pioneers in human genetic enhancement.
While it has only completed a Phase I clinical trial on follistatin gene therapy, the company claims the treatment has shown ‘great promise.’
Roatán, which is located around 40 miles off the northern coast of Honduras, is home to an experimental city called Prospera
Follistatin is a protein that helps regulate the metabolism and plays a role in regulating several bodily functions, including muscle growth and development, bone health and the reproductive system.
In animal studies, follistatin gene therapy was found to extend the lifespan of mice by 32.5 percent.
In a brochure detailing what the procedure involves with humans, Minicircle describes it as ‘well-researched, safe, and exceptionally effective.’
It is currently taking on volunteers as part of its next round of clinical trials.
Following its initial trial, the company claimed follistatin gene therapy ‘increased lean mass, decreased fat, decreased inflammation, lengthened telomeres, and dramatically reversed epigenetic age acceleration’.
Improving the body in this way would in turn help someone to live longer.
Johnson, who is spending millions of dollars in an effort to live forever, underwent follistatin gene therapy in early 2024 and said he was impressed with the results.
In a video captured by Johnson during his visit to Minicirle, he is injected with a follistatin-producing gene in his stomach and buttocks.
He had no adverse reaction to the procedure and, six months later, tests revealed his speed of aging had dropped to 0.64, meaning he would celebrate his birthday every 19 months, aging slower than people who celebrate the typical every 12 months.
Johnson has his own ‘speed of aging’ tests, which he developed as part of his Blueprint product range, measure a comprehensive range of biomarkers including genes and proteins in the body.
Johnson said the aging test he did following follistatin gene therapy was a ‘personal best.’
He saw his muscle mass increase by seven percent, while his follistatin levels increased by 160 percent just two weeks after his treatment.
One of the treatments on offer from the Minicircle clinic in Prospera – as tested by biohacker Bryan Johnson (pictured) – is follistatin gene therapy
While gene therapy can have a risk of causing cancer, with blood stem cells mutating, Johnson says Minicircle’s offering is unique, as it is reversible in case anything goes wrong.
Before having his treatment, he explains: ‘Until now my team and I have avoided gene therapy because it seemed too risky if a therapy caused say cancer in my body… there would be nothing I could do to reverse the process.
‘What makes Minicircle’s therapy different is that it has a built-in kill switch. If my body reacts badly, I can take the antibiotic tetracycline, instantly killing and deactivating the DNA molecules I’ve been injected with.’
Along with gene therapy, the same clinic on Prospera offers stem cell therapy.
Stem cell transplants – in which ‘blank, shape-shifting’ cells are implanted to repair injured tissue – are the new frontier of regenerative medicine, experts say.
So far, this groundbreaking field of medicine has made waves in the fields of cancers, autoimmune diseases, and neurological disorders.
A stem cell transplant is not a one-time-only procedure, but because the cost is so high – as much as $20,000 per treatment – many people can only afford to do it two or three times per year.
Minicircle’s sister company on the island, GARM, also offers a range of aesthetic treatments to reverse the signs of aging, with these ranging from cdiscount Botox to non-invasive facelifts, which use focused ultrasound energy to tighten skin and stimulate collagen production.
Johnson, who underwent follistatin gene therapy in early 2024, said he was impressed with the results
In 2024, the city of Prospera – which is still largely under construction – also played host to a two month-long ‘pop-up city’ called Vitalia
Entrepreneur Brimen applied to build Prospera on Roatán in 2017 and by 2024, there were more than 200 companies registered in the 58 acre island city.
Bloomberg reports while US-based businesses face a 21 percent tax on gross income in the United States, Prospera’s is just one percent, providing a haven for the ultra-rich to avoid paying tax.
Along with Minicircle, there are dozens of other biotech companies luring visitors to Prospera with treatments that would otherwise be banned in the US.
And now, residency is booming as luxury houses crop up.
Brimen’s original investment plan, projected the city would have 38,000 residents by 2030 and that foreign direct investment would top $500 million in 2025.
While ultra-rich, forward-thinking entrepreneurs and biohackers have been lured in by the concept of Prospera, many locals on Roatán are not happy with the medical tourism.
They say it is not benefitting the local economy as it is an exclusive and closed off community, with its own set of rules.
In the futuristic metropolis, which is the brainchild of Venezuelan-born wealth fund manager Erick Brimen, there are single-digit tax rates and Bitcoin has been adopted as a unit of currency
In 2024, the city – which is still largely under construction – played host to a two month-long ‘pop-up city’ called Vitalia, which would ‘harbor renegade life scientists, biotechnology engineers and an entrepreneurially driven community of people that care.’
Longevity expert Johnson was among the 100 attendees who spent time at the exclusive camp.
Some of the activities on offer included follistatin injections and people could have magnets implanted in their fingertips, which biohackers believe can sensory perception, essentially giving them a ‘sixth sense’.
An online sign-up page advertising the event described it as a chance to explore the foundation of a new city… that will be run around the idea that ‘life is good, death is bad.’
