Originally published In Press as doi:10.1194/jlr.E500004-JLR200 on July 1, 2005
Journal of Lipid Research, Vol. 46, 1581, August 2005
Copyright © 2005 by American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
A Tribute to Lew Gidez
Richard J. Havel
Cardiovascular Research Institute University of California, San Francisco
Published, JLR Papers in Press, July 1, 2005. DOI 10.1194/jlr.E500004-JLR200
Lewis I. Gidez, Ph.D., Executive Editor of the Journal of Lipid Research (JLR) for almost 31 years, died on March 20, 2005, after a long battle with cancer. Lew was a friend and behind-the-scenes mentor to many of us in the lipid research community who submitted their work to the Editorial Office or also served the Journal in various capacities. Indeed, he was chiefly responsible for the quality and overall success of the JLR from 1969 to 2000, guiding the journal from a bimonthly to monthly publication under a series of Editors. He became the chief advisor to Lipid Research, Inc., then the Journal's owner. His extensive knowledge of scientific publications and common sense were critical to the transfer of management in 1999 to the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, which was followed by transfer of ownership in 2003.
Lew was born and raised in Boston, Massachusetts, graduating from the Boston Latin School in 1943. After attending Bates College in Maine and joining the Naval ROTC, he served on active duty in 1945–46 and remained in the reserves until resigning his commission in 1966 with the rank of Lieutenant Commander. After World War II, he finished his undergraduate work at the University of Iowa, graduating with a degree in Geology in 1948. His postgraduate education was at Harvard University, where he obtained his Ph.D. in Biochemistry with Manfred Karnovsky in 1953. He entered the lipid arena with isotopic studies of triglyceride absorption and glycerol metabolism in rats, extending earlier work by Bengt Borgström in Sweden. This work was carried out in part at Brookhaven National Laboratory, where he continued to work for several years. From 1958 to 1986, Lew was on the faculty of Albert Einstein College of Medicine in New York City, where he rose to the rank of Associate Professor of Biochemistry and Medicine. He was a close colleague of Howard Eder and Paul Roheim, with whom he carried out a series of important studies of cholesterol and plasma lipoprotein metabolism in rats while continuing independent work on fat absorption. In the 1970s, Gidez and John Swaney initiated research on rat serum apolipoproteins, applying the new method of isoelectric focusing. In 1983, he published what became his most highly cited paper—on the separation and quantitation of HDL subclasses by a recently described precipitation procedure developed by a coauthor, Meier Burstein.
In 1969, Lew was persuaded to become the Executive Editor of the JLR, continuing in that capacity part-time until 1986, when he accepted an appointment as Director of the FASEB Office of Publications in Bethesda, Maryland. Shortly thereafter, he helped to create the FASEB Journal from the former Federation Proceedings, and he became the Executive Editor of the FASEB Journal as well as the Journal of Leukocyte Biology, while continuing his position with the JLR. Lew retired from his FASEB position in 1997. Needless to say, the JLR remained first in his heart, and he continued as its Executive Editor until his retirement in 2000.
Lew enjoyed the unwavering support of his late wife Margaret and his large family. He is survived by his brother Richard and five children, together with 11 grandchildren. He will be remembered with affection by many professional friends and colleagues, who remain grateful for his generosity, insights, and wisdom.
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