Joseph Witztum

· Professor RTAD

University of California, San Diego · Endocrinology and Metabolism

Active 1968–2026

h-index181

Citations113.9k

Papers77369 last 5y

Funding$256.2M1 active

Academic metrics are sourced from OpenAlex and public funding records; values may differ from Google Scholar.

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About

Joseph Witztum is a faculty member at UCSD in the School of Medicine, specifically within the Vc-health Sciences. His research activities focus on the pivotal role of oxidation-specific epitopes in cardiovascular disease (CVD) and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). His work involves investigating immune mechanisms in atherosclerosis and inflammation, with a particular emphasis on the development of therapeutic strategies such as vaccines to inhibit atherosclerosis. Witztum's research also explores the effects of oxidized phospholipids, lipoprotein(a), and other lipid-related factors on cardiovascular outcomes, as well as the role of immune responses in neurodegeneration and metabolic diseases. His extensive funding history includes multiple NIH grants where he serves as principal investigator, highlighting his leadership in advancing understanding of lipid oxidation, immune responses, and their implications for cardiovascular and metabolic diseases.

Research topics

Cancer research
Medicine
Biochemistry
Immunology
Internal medicine
Biology
Chemistry
Cell biology
Endocrinology
Genetics

Selected publications

Uptake of oxidized lipids by the scavenger receptor CD36 promotes lipid peroxidation and dysfunction in CD8+ T cells in tumors
Immunity · 2021 · 723 citations
DOI
Niche-Specific Reprogramming of Epigenetic Landscapes Drives Myeloid Cell Diversity in Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis
Immunity · 2020 · 422 citations
DOI
An AMPK–caspase-6 axis controls liver damage in nonalcoholic steatohepatitis
Science · 2020 · 313 citations
Liver cell death has an essential role in nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). The activity of the energy sensor adenosine monophosphate (AMP)-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is repressed in NASH. Liver-specific AMPK knockout aggravated liver damage in mouse NASH models. AMPK phosphorylated proapoptotic caspase-6 protein to inhibit its activation, keeping hepatocyte apoptosis in check. Suppression of AMPK activity relieved this inhibition, rendering caspase-6 activated in human and mouse NASH. A…
DOI
Oxidized phospholipids in cardiovascular disease
Nature Reviews Cardiology · 2023-10-17 · 113 citations
reviewSenior author
Publisher DOI
Volanesorsen to Prevent Acute Pancreatitis in Hypertriglyceridemia
New England Journal of Medicine · 2024-01-31 · 78 citations
letter
Publisher DOI

Recent grants

NIH Grant R01HL069464
NIH · $1.5M · 2005
NIH Grant R01HL086559
NIH · $2.0M · 2013
NIH Grant M01RR000827
NIH · $28.9M · 2010

Frequent coauthors

Sotirios Tsimikas
University of California, San Diego
950 shared
Elizabeth R. Miller
239 shared
Stefan Kiechl
Innsbruck Medical University
226 shared
Johann Willeit
Innsbruck Medical University
225 shared
Peter Libby
Universidade de São Paulo
194 shared
Ayelet Gonen
University of California, San Diego
182 shared
Peter Santer
Krankenhaus Bruneck
166 shared
Raimund Pechlaner
Innsbruck Medical University
166 shared

Education

M.D.
University of California, San Diego
B.A.
University of California, San Diego

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