John J. Kopchick
Discovered the growth hormone receptor antagonist that became the FDA-approved acromegaly drug pegvisomant (Somavert)
PhD, University of Texas Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences at MD Anderson (1980) · postdoctoral fellow, Roche Institute of Molecular Biology (1980–1982) · senior scientist, Merck Institute of Therapeutic Research (1982–1986) · Ohio University, Edison Biotechnology Institute (1987–present) · Distinguished Professor & Goll-Ohio Eminent Scholar (since 2012)
Decades after his accidental 1987 discovery that a mutated growth hormone (GH) molecule could block rather than activate the GH receptor — work that became the FDA-approved drug pegvisomant — Kopchick's lab is now using the same logic to ask how far blocking GH action can extend life. In List et al. 2026 (LIST2026), his team engineered mice that transgenically express a GH receptor antagonist built on the same G119K mutant chemistry behind pegvisomant, and found it significantly extended both median and maximal lifespan in both sexes. A companion study, Duran-Ortiz et al. 2026 (DUR2026), showed that deleting the GH receptor gene starting only at 12 months of age (adult-onset) still extended healthy lifespan in both sexes.
Kopchick's original discovery happened almost by accident: while trying to engineer a bigger mouse, he instead produced a dwarf mouse. That molecule became Somavert (pegvisomant), still used worldwide to treat acromegaly, generating roughly $100+ million in licensing royalties for Ohio University. He trained at MD Anderson and the Roche Institute before six years at Merck, joining Ohio University in 1987.
He has since built one of the world's most extensive collections of GH-signaling mouse models, holds 17 patents, has published 400+ papers, is a National Academy of Inventors Fellow, and received the Endocrine Society's 2019 Laureate Award for Outstanding Innovation.
Milestones in the Atlas
| Year | Evidence | Study |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | A | Growth Hormone Receptor Antagonism Extends Lifespan LIST2026 Kopchick's own antagonist chemistry — the molecular basis of pegvisomant — is shown for the first time to extend lifespan in mice when expressed transgenically. |
| 2026 | A | Midlife Growth Hormone Receptor Ablation Extends Healthy Lifespan and Induces Sex-Specific Hepatic Transcriptional Changes at Single-Cell Resolution DUR2026 As senior investigator, shows that even adult-onset disruption of GH receptor signaling extends healthy lifespan. |