Dr. Daniel Steinberg was a pioneering lipid biochemist and physician-scientist who established himself as one of the few founders of the modern fields of cholesterol and atherosclerosis research. Following completion of his doctoral work, he joined the National Institutes of Health in 1951 where he led a creative laboratory conducting fundamental research on lipid metabolism for 17 years. In 1968, he moved to the University of California, San Diego where he headed the Division of Metabolic Diseases and served as Professor of Medicine and Biochemistry for over four decades. Born on July 21, 1922, Dr. Steinberg built one of the most productive research laboratories in the world while training generations of researchers in cardiovascular science.
Dr. Steinberg's most significant scientific contribution was his discovery of the role of low-density lipoprotein oxidation in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis, which resolved a major paradox in the field regarding how cholesterol accumulates in arterial walls. His laboratory demonstrated that oxidation converts LDL to a form recognized by specific macrophage receptors that do not recognize native unmodified LDL, providing the molecular mechanism for cholesterol deposition in plaques. A strong proponent of the cholesterol hypothesis of atherosclerosis, Dr. Steinberg successfully urged the National Institutes of Health to direct substantial resources toward basic research and clinical trials that would ultimately confirm the link between cholesterol levels and cardiovascular disease. His influence was instrumental in initiating the Lipid Research Clinics Coronary Primary Prevention Trial whose positive results opened the floodgates to subsequent clinical trials establishing cholesterol-lowering as a cornerstone of cardiovascular prevention.
Beyond his experimental discoveries, Dr. Steinberg played a pivotal role in shaping the research agenda and clinical practice in cardiovascular medicine through his advocacy and leadership. Even at age 90, he remained intellectually active, publishing The Cholesterol Wars in 2007 and continuing to write about scientific history and missed Nobel prizes. He actively engaged with contemporary scientific debates, recently writing to the ATP IV Panel urging more aggressive treatment recommendations for hypercholesterolemia at earlier ages. Dr. Steinberg passed away on March 14, 2015 at the age of 92, leaving an enduring legacy that continues to guide research on lipid metabolism and cardiovascular disease prevention worldwide.
