Alan R. Tall MB, BS

Alan Tall is the Tilden-Weger-Bieler Professor of Medicine and head of the Division of Molecular Medicine at Columbia University. He is internationally recognized for his work on plasma lipoproteins and atherosclerosis. Dr. Tall discovered mutations in the cholesteryl ester transfer protein (CETP) gene that are associated with increased HDL levels and reduced LDL levels, helping to elucidate the role of CETP in lipoprotein metabolism and identifying CETP as a therapeutic target. Dr. Tall has shown that the ATP binding cassette transporters ABCA1 and ABCG1 promote cholesterol efflux from macrophage foam cells to apoA-1 and HDL particles, respectively. This activity also inhibits the proliferation of hematopoietic stem cells and the production of pro-atherogenic myeloid cells. Recent studies have examined the role of Jak2 mutations in promoting atherosclerosis and thrombosis in myeloproliferative neoplasms and in clonal hematopoiesis. In recognition of his work, Dr. Tall has been the recipient of the Irvine Page Award, the Robert I. Levy Lectureship and the Distinguished Scientist Award of the American Heart Association and the Anitschkow Prize of the European Atherosclerosis Society.