Cardiologist J.L. Mehta, MD, PhD, of the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) has received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the International Academy of Cardiovascular Sciences.
Mehta is a distinguished professor of medicine and physiology and biophysics and holds the Stebbins Chair in Cardiology in the UAMS College of Medicine.
He received the award Sept. 14 in Serbia at the academy’s joint meeting for Europe and North America. The award recognizes his contributions to cardiovascular science, medicine, and surgery.
Mehta received his medical degree from Panjab University, Chandigarh, India, and his PhD from the University of Uppsala, Sweden. He completed his postgraduate education at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York City, and the University of Minnesota, Minn.
Mehta joined the faculty at UAMS in 2000 to lead the Division of Cardiovascular Medicine.
He is known for his original work on platelet biology and thrombosis in myocardial ischemia. This groundbreaking work led to trials of aspirin and other anti-platelet drugs in cardiac patients.
His research over the last 15 years has focused on the biology of LOX-1, a receptor for oxidized low-density lipoprotein, which has opened a new target for cardiovascular therapy. His research has been supported for 36 years by the National Institutes of Health, American Heart Association, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, and several pharmaceutical companies.
Mehta serves or has served on the editorial boards of several major cardiology, physiology and pharmacology journals, including Circulation, Hypertension, the American Journal of Cardiology, European Heart Journal, Journal of the American College of Cardiology, and the World Journal of Cardiology.
Mehta was named among the top 27 cardiologists in 2017 in the United States by Forbes magazine. He has been listed among the Top Doctors in the US, and the Best Doctors in Arkansas.