Million-dollar donor Dr. Jim Johnson helps shine a huge light on the Buck

When it comes to celebrating Dr. Jim Johnson’s support of the Buck and all it stands for, it’s hard to pick where to start.  Do we highlight his involvement in an award-winning film featuring the Buck that was an audience favorite at the prestigious Mill Valley Festival, or do we go with the fact that he recently became a million-dollar donor to the Institute?  Let’s start with the film!

Johnson, a former plastic surgeon, is the producer of Forever Young, a documentary that follows scientists, innovators and thought leaders invested in extending both our lifespan, but most importantly our healthspan. The film (you can watch it on Substack with a subscription) opens by exploring how the age-old quest to defy death has shaped religion, culture and science, and then makes a dramatic pivot to highlighting the scientific breakthroughs that have us at the brink of seizing control of the very mechanisms of life.  The film, which includes many Buck scientists, won the Best of Active Cine ma Award as an Audience Favorite at the recent festival in Mill Valley.

“Making this film was a dream that I never had, which came true,” says Johnson, who traveled internationally with the director. “It’s been so rewarding to see how people have reacted to the film. To change attitudes about aging and celebrate the science aimed at promoting health and vitality has been rewarding beyond measure.”    

“We are so grateful for Jim’s enthusiasm for the Buck and our science,” says Buck President and CEO Eric Verdin, MD, who participated in a panel discussion following a screening of the film. “Forever Young captures the excitement in the field and shines a light on the Buck that can now be shared around the world. This type of visibility is wonderful for us.”

Johnson’s direct involvement with the Buck continues to have a seismic impact on our science.  A 2022 gift of $250,000 allowed the Buck to launch its first clinical trial. That donation kickstarted a clinical research program that now involves seven trials that are focused, among other things, on preventing frailty, improving metabolic health in post-menopausal women, and understanding the molecular impact of exercise on aging muscle.  “When I come to work every day I am able to focus on what the Buck can do to promote healthy aging in older adults,” says assistant research professor Brianna Stubbs, PhD, who co-directs the Buck’s clinical research unit. “Jim’s generosity started us on this path. I think I have the best job at the Buck and he helped make that happen.” 

Johnson is perfectly poised to support Buck’s science, having a long-standing interest in health and longevity and his own experience in research. He organized a clinical trial in 2006 with the head of the pulmonology section at Louisiana State University where he was on staff in plastic surgery.  The trial involved overweight people with asthma. Ten people did alternate-day fasting for eight weeks. At the end of the trial, those who had bad asthma had pronounced improvements in their condition. They also had serum chemistries that showed a great reduction of inflammatory markers and oxidative stress.  Johnson says the paper was the first clinical trial published by a group of people “in the wild” that proved that fasting could impact a health condition. “I am really proud of that work,” he says, “And I’m thrilled to be involved again in research at this stage of my life.”

In addition to funding the Buck’s first clinical trial, Johnson’s million-dollar support has enabled studies in cellular senescence and autophagy as they relate to aging. He’s also supporting research involving supplemental Urolithin A and its potential impact on osteoarthritis as well as efforts to predict the efficacy of drugs using a brain aging clock. Johnson is also helping the clinical research unit compete in the XPrize Healthspan. 

“Each of these projects is of personal interest,” says Johnson. ““There is no greater thrill than the eureka moment when a scientist discovers something new. Living near the Buck Institute is an extraordinary piece of good luck for me. Meeting with the scientists, discussing and supporting their work has been transformative in my own life.”

“We so appreciate Jim’s generosity to the Buck,” says Verdin. “The fact that he lives in Marin and is working with the team is a huge plus and makes our work even more rewarding. This is philanthropy at its best – when both the scientists and the donor thrive from the relationship.”