Cellular senescence was discovered by Leonard Hayflick in 1961 when he observed that normal human fibroblasts stop dividing after ~50 cell doublings — the "Hayflick limit." Initially viewed as a cell culture artifact, senescence was later recognized as a fundamental aging mechanism. The field transformed in 2008 when Judith Campisi's lab described the SASP — revealing that senescent cells don't just stop; they actively drive disease.

Who is credited with inventing senolytics?

The term "senolytic" was coined and the first senolytic drugs identified by James Kirkland (Mayo Clinic) and Yi Zhu (Mayo Clinic) in 2015, through a computational screen of senescent cell survival networks.

Will senolytic drugs eventually be FDA-approved for aging?

The FDA does not currently recognize aging as a disease indication. The TAME trial (metformin for aging) is the first trial specifically targeting aging itself. If successful, it may open a pathway for aging-specific drug approvals, including senolytics.