E. Dale Abel
Evan Dale Abel | |
|---|---|
| Born | February 4, 1963 Jamaica |
| Occupation(s) | Endocrinologist, academic administrator |
| Years active | 1992–present |
| Known for | Research on molecular pathways of cardiac dysfunction in diabetes; chair of the Department of Medicine at David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA |
Evan Dale Abel (b. 1963) is a prominent American endocrinologist serving as the chair of the Department of Medicine at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. His investigative work centers on the molecular pathways responsible for cardiac dysfunction in diabetic conditions. Abel holds fellowships with both the American Heart Association and the American College of Physicians and gained election to the National Academy of Sciences in 2022.
Early life and education
Abel was born in Jamaica on February 4, 1963, and attended Wolmer's High School for Boys. Motivated by his parents to pursue careers in medicine, law, or engineering, he completed his undergraduate medical education at the University of the West Indies before earning a doctorate in physiology from the University of Oxford. He undertook internships in surgery and pediatrics at the University of the West Indies, followed by an internal medicine residency at Northwestern University.
Research and career
In 1992, Abel initiated a clinical research fellowship focusing on diabetes at Harvard Medical School and subsequently joined its faculty as co-director of the fellowship program at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. Working alongside Barbara Kahn, he identified a connection between adipose tissue glucose transporter (GLUT4) and insulin resistance. After being recruited by the University of Utah in 2000, he was promoted to Professor of Medicine. With funding from the National Institutes of Health, Abel developed a diabetic mouse model to analyze cellular glucose transport, utilizing conditional gene targeting techniques to disrupt glucose uptake specifically in cardiac muscle cells.
Abel assumed the role of chair of Internal Medicine at the University of Iowa in 2013, where he continued his research into diabetes-associated heart failure and explored how elevated glucose absorption by platelets contributes to abnormal clot formation. In 2022, he was named chair of Medicine at UCLA’s David Geffen School of Medicine.
Awards and honors
- 1986: Awarded a Rhodes Scholarship to study at the University of Oxford
- 1996: Recipient of Harvard Medical School’s Eleanor and Miles Shore 50th Anniversary Scholars in Medicine Fellowship
- 1999: Honored with Harvard Medical School Excellence in Teaching Award
- 2001: Granted the American Thyroid Association Van Meter Award
- 2001: Received David W. Haack Memorial Award in Cardiovascular Research
- 2003: Designated Established Investigator by the American Heart Association
- 2012: Delivered James Pulliam Memorial Lectureship at Meharry Medical College
- 2012: Presented Gerald D. Aurbach Award Lecture for the Endocrine Society
- 2013: Elected Fellow of the American Heart Association
- 2015: Invited speaker for Max Miller Lecture at University of Tennessee Health Science Center
- 2015: Inducted into the National Academy of Medicine
- 2018: Honored with NIH Director's Astute Clinician Lecture
- 2018: Awarded History Makers Award by the African American Museum of Iowa
- 2020: Selected as president-elect for the Association of Professors of Medicine
- 2020: Recognized by Cell Press as one of America’s most inspiring Black scientists
- 2023: Received Fred Conrad Koch Lifetime Achievement Award, the highest accolade from the Endocrine Society for outstanding contributions to endocrinology
Notable Publications
- Boudina, Sihem; Abel, E. Dale (June 26, 2007). Reexamining Diabetic Cardiomyopathy. Circulation, 115(25), 3213–3223.
- Abel, E. Dale et al. (2001). GLUT4 Gene Targeting in Adipose Tissue Disrupts Insulin Function in Muscle and Liver. Nature, 409(6821), 729–733.
- Boudina, Sihem; Abel, Evan Dale (2010). Causes and Consequences of Diabetic Cardiomyopathy. Reviews in Endocrine and Metabolic Disorders, 11(1), 31–39.
Sources
- Alexander, Otis (January 28, 2023). Evan Dale Abel (1963 -) •. Retrieved February 13, 2025.
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- 1963 births
- Living people
- 21st-century African-American scientists
- 21st-century African-American physicians
- 21st-century American physicians
- University of Iowa faculty
- University of Utah faculty
- Harvard Medical School alumni
- 20th-century African-American scientists
- American endocrinologists
- Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences
- Members of the National Academy of Medicine
- Alumni of the University of Oxford