LOS ANGELES - Daniel J. Rader, MD, professor of Medicine and chief, Division of Translational Medicine and Human Genetics at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, has been awarded the American Heart Association's (AHA) Clinical Research Prize for developing new methods to identify factors regulating the metabolism of fat particles in the bloodstream and testing their impact on the development of atherosclerosis. Dr. Rader received the award today during the opening ceremony of the AHA Scientific Sessions in Los Angeles, CA.
Dr. Rader has spent the last two decades working in the field of lipoprotein biology and atherosclerosis, and is a widely recognized international leader in this field. His basic research laboratory focuses on genetic and pharmacologic regulation of lipoprotein metabolism and atherosclerosis, and he directs a translational research program focusing on new pathways involved in lipoprotein metabolism and atherosclerosis discovered through human genetics studies and novel approaches to treatment of dyslipidemia and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease.
Dr. Rader has a particular interest in the metabolism of HDL (the "good cholesterol") and its relationship to atherosclerosis. In recent research, he has illuminated pathways of HDL-mediated 'reverse cholesterol transport' and has shown that the functional ability of HDL to extract cholesterol from cells is a better predictor of coronary disease than HDL cholesterol blood levels. In addition, Rader and his team have helped to understand how new genes associated with dyslipidemia and coronary artery disease work to influence these conditions. Finally, Rader and his team demonstrated the potential usefulness of a drug that works through a new pathway to lower LDL (the "bad cholesterol") in patients with a severe form of inherited high cholesterol.
He is a Distinguished Fellow of the International Atherosclerosis Society, a member of the Board of External Experts of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), and a member of the Institute of Medicine.
Penn Medicine is one of the world's leading academic medical centers, dedicated to the related missions of medical education, biomedical research, and excellence in patient care. Penn Medicine consists of the Raymond and Ruth Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania (founded in 1765 as the nation's first medical school) and the University of Pennsylvania Health System, which together form a $4.3 billion enterprise.
The Perelman School of Medicine is currently ranked #2 in U.S. News & World Report's survey of research-oriented medical schools. The School is consistently among the nation's top recipients of funding from the National Institutes of Health, with $479.3 million awarded in the 2011 fiscal year.
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