Dr. Antonio Gotto, dean emeritus of Weill Cornell Medical College, was awarded the 24th Annual Robert J. and Claire Pasarow Foundation Award in Cardiovascular Research last week.
At a ceremony in Los Angeles on Friday, Gotto was recognized for his contributions towards the prevention and treatment of cardiovascular disease through advancements in lipid therapy.
“My research in cardiovascular disease started out as basic research in studying the protein that carries a bad cholesterol in the blood,” Gotto said. “This is a cholesterol that is most closely associated with hurting of arteries and heart attacks.”
Gotto is also involved in spreading public awareness about the risk of cardiovascular diseases through his research, which includes partnering in a restaurant “dedicated to the principle of cardiovascular health.”
“My study in cardiovascular studies expands from basic research to chronicle trials and invention using information from the laboratories, to communicating through public intervention and changing the health average of the public by reducing cardiovascular disease,” he said.
Gotto said that he was inspired by his daughter’s health condition, which gives her a higher risk of cardiovascular disease. He was also influenced as a doctoral student, when he worked on basic research — research that increases understanding of fundamental health principles.
“Part of my inspiration was, as a Rhodes Scholar at Oxford University, my interest in basic research while pursuing my doctorate in biochemistry,” Gotto said, “I wanted to apply basic research about cardiovascular diseases that one learns in a laboratory directly to patients.”
Gotto shared the award with fellow honorees Dr. Robert Mahley, University of California, San Francisco and Dr. Peter Ratcliffe, Oxford University’s Centre for Cellular and Molecular Physiology.
The Robert J. and Claire Pasarow Foundation Awards are awarded to stimulate research in cardiovascular diseases, cancer research and psychiatry and physiology studies, according to Gotto.
Original Author: Manu Rathore