Alter Foundation

Mission

The Alter Foundation exists to accelerate the understanding and eventual reversal of biological aging — the primary risk factor underlying cancer, neurodegeneration, and many chronic diseases.

Rather than targeting individual diseases in isolation, we focus on the shared underlying processes that drive cellular decline. By identifying and correcting these root causes, we aim to enable broad, durable improvements in health and longevity.

Our Approach

We pursue a systems-level understanding of aging through experimental and computational work, beginning with model organisms such as Saccharomyces cerevisiae. These systems allow us to isolate and rigorously test the fundamental mechanisms of cellular aging, including energetic decline, organelle dysfunction, and loss of homeostasis.

Our work combines:

• High-throughput experimental platforms for aging and selection
• Genetic and evolutionary approaches to identify longevity mechanisms
• Quantitative assays of cellular function across age
• Computational modeling to understand system-level dynamics

Open Scientific Incentives

In parallel, we support a decentralized research model by awarding prizes for completed scientific contributions that advance understanding of aging. These prizes are open to students, researchers, and independent scientists.

We believe that accelerating progress in aging research requires not only new ideas, but new incentive structures that reward meaningful contributions wherever they arise.

Long-Term Vision

Our long-term goal is to identify interventions that restore and maintain cellular function over time. By addressing the root causes of aging, we aim to make age-related diseases preventable rather than inevitable.

We view aging not as an unsolvable inevitability, but as a tractable biological problem — one that can be understood, measured, and ultimately controlled.

Scientific Prizes

The Alter Foundation awards prizes for completed scientific contributions that advance understanding of biological aging and age-related decline.

Our goal is to accelerate discovery by recognizing impactful work — whether newly generated or previously completed — across cellular systems involved in aging.

Prize Amounts

• Teir 1 -- $100
• Teir 2 -- $250
• Teir 3 -- $500

Scope

We award prizes for contributions advancing understanding of aging, including but not limited to:

• Energetic decline (ATP, metabolism)
• Mitochondrial dysfunction
• Vacuolar / lysosomal changes
• Organelle coupling and homeostasis
• Replicative or chronological aging dynamics
• Experimental methods enabling aging research

Examples of Contributions

Examples include, but are not limited to:

• Timelapse imaging of aging yeast cells
• Vacuolar pH measurements across age
• ATP measurements during aging
• Mitochondrial membrane potential analysis
• Evolution experiments affecting lifespan

These examples are illustrative only and do not guarantee an award.

Eligibility

Anyone may submit, including students, researchers, and independent scientists.

Submission Requirements

• Brief description of the work
• Summary of findings
• Supporting data (images, datasets, or analysis)

Important Notes

• Awards are for completed work only
• Work may be newly generated or previously completed
• Awards are not guaranteed
• Foundation guidance is nonbinding and does not guarantee selection
• Prizes are unrestricted cash awards

We believe great science can come from anywhere. By recognizing meaningful contributions, we aim to accelerate progress toward understanding — and ultimately curing — aging.

Submit your work to admin@alterfoundation.org to be considered for an award.

Publications

-   Yeast Aging Flow Cytometry Data

Contact

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