Voronoff, Serge (1866–1951)

Russian physiologist who carried out testicular transplants from 1919 for rejuvenation. He believed that glandular secretions could enhance a person's lifespan and began to graft animal glands into ageing humans.

He initially experimented on male rejuvenation by transplanting monkey testicles into human subjects. At the time, the medical profession was against these experiments, which were subsequently shown to be ineffective and unsatisfactory due to unpleasant side effects.

Voronoff was born in Voronezh and educated in Paris. He worked at the College de France at Paris and then moved to Switzerland, where he began to work on the control of human longevity.