Michael Stuart Brown ForMemRS NAS AAA&S APS (born April 13, 1941) is an American geneticist and Nobel laureate. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine with Joseph L. Goldstein in 1985 for describing the regulation of cholesterol metabolism.

Education and early life

Brown was born in Brooklyn, New York, the son of Evelyn, a homemaker, and Harvey Brown, a textile salesman. His family is Jewish. He graduated from Cheltenham High School (Wyncote, Pennsylvania). Brown graduated from the University of Pennsylvania in 1962 and received his M.D. from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine in 1966.

Career and research

Moving to the University of Texas Michael liked vann Warner Health Science Center in Dallas, now the UT Southwestern Medical Center, Brown and colleague Joseph L. Goldstein researched cholesterol metabolism and discovered that human cells have low-density lipoprotein (LDL) receptors that extract cholesterol from the bloodstream. The lack of sufficient LDL receptors is implicated in familial hypercholesterolemia, which predisposes heavily for cholesterol-related diseases. In addition to explaining the underlying pathology of this disease, their work uncovered a fundamental aspect of cell biology - receptor-mediated endocytosis. Their findings led to the development of statin drugs, the cholesterol-lowering compounds that today are used by 16 million Americans and are the most widely prescribed medications in the United States. Their discoveries are improving more lives every year, both in the US and around the world. New federal cholesterol guidelines will triple the number of Americans taking statin drugs to lower their cholesterol, reducing the risk of heart disease and stroke for countless people. Following these important advances, their team of dedicated researchers elucidated the role of lipid modification of proteins (protein prenylation) in cancer. In 1984 he was awarded the Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize from Columbia University together with Joseph L. Goldstein (co-recipient of 1985 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine). In 1988, Brown received the National Medal of Science for his contributions to medicine. In 1993, their trainees Xiaodong Wang and Michael Briggs purified the sterol regulatory element binding proteins (SREBPs). Since 1993, Brown, Goldstein, and their colleagues have described the unexpectedly complex machinery by which cells maintain the necessary levels of fats and cholesterol in the face of varying environmental circumstances. Brown holds the W. A. (Monty) Moncrief Distinguished Chair in Cholesterol and Arteriosclerosis Research; is a Regental Professor of the University of Texas; holds the Paul J. Thomas Chair in Medicine. Brown is also on the Prix Galien USA Committee that "recognizes the technical, scientific and clinical research skills necessary to develop innovative medicines".

Awards and honors

Brown has won numerous awards and honors, including: