Joseph Baur is an Assistant Professor in the Institute for Diabetes, Obesity, and Metabolism and the Department of Physiology at the Perelman School of Medicine of the University of Pennsylvania. He has made key contributions to the understanding of how metabolism and dietary factors influence longevity. In 2006, Dr. Baur and colleagues showed that a sirtuin activator, resveratrol, is able to improve insulin sensitivity and extend lifespan in obese mice. Recently, he lead a team that revealed a mechanism accounting for off-target effects of rapamycin, a drug that extends life in mice, but has been plagued by side effects that limit its utility in humans. His laboratory at Penn is currently focused on the use of small molecules to understand and mimic the life-extending effects of caloric restriction in rodents.

Dr. Baur has authored more that 30 peer-reviewed scientific publications, including seminal papers in Nature and Science. Findings from his work have been reported by leading news media, including the Wall Street Journal and the New York Times. Dr. Baur performed his postdoctoral studies with Dr. David Sinclair at Harvard Medical School, and holds a PhD from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas.