James Kirkland

At a glance

• James Kirkland is an American geriatrician and ageing researcher. He long directed the Mayo Clinic’s Kogod Center on Aging and has worked at Cedars-Sinai in Los Angeles since 2023.
• He is one of the pioneers of senolytics: drugs that selectively clear senescent ‘zombie’ cells. These cells accumulate with age and secrete inflammatory factors.
• In 2015 his team described the combination of dasatinib (a cancer drug) and quercetin (a plant compound) as the first senolytic cocktail.
• In mice, senolytics improved physical function and extended the remaining lifespan of old animals (Nature Medicine, 2018).
• Small first studies in humans, including in lung fibrosis and diabetic kidney disease, showed the approach is feasible. Larger controlled trials are still under way.
• For longevity, his work matters because it targets a concrete mechanism of ageing rather than one disease at a time.
• Takeaway: senolytics are still experimental; don’t take them on your own. Exercise and a healthy weight do limit the build-up of senescent cells.