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| William Connor, M.D. |
Alumni
Interviews:
William Connor, M.D.
"There's so much to find out. As long as the brain is working and the body is working, this is the most interesting thing I can do."
Today the link between cholesterol and heart disease is common knowledge, thanks in large part to William Connor's pioneering lipid and dietary cholesterol studies. Connor has spent his life exploring relationships between nutrition and the body.
His career came about almost by accident. At first set on becoming a diplomat, Connor studied history and economics in college.
"I had no idea I had any aptitude for science," he recalled. "When World War II came, I tried to volunteer for the Navy and the Air Force, but because of my poor vision, the only place that would take me was the Signal Corps. They sent me to electronics school at the UI, where I took physics courses and found out I liked science."
Stationed in Hawaii, Connor volunteered at Queens Hospital in Honolulu and decided to enter medicine. Later he was inspired to pursue cardiovascular research when he saw patients die from coronary heart disease. One patient sparked an idea that would guide Connor's career.
"His diet and blood were very fatty, and he died suddenly from a heart attack," Connor said. "This led me to believe there was a connection between what people ate and heart disease."
Connor joined the UI faculty in 1958 and soon showed in humans that dietary cholesterol and saturated fat increased plasma cholesterol, and that saturated fats caused blood clots. He also demonstrated that atherosclerosis is a reversible process, and in 1974 discovered sitosterolemia, a genetic disease that can clog arteries.
Connor moved on to exploring the dietary role of omega-3 fatty acids, moving to Oregon Health Sciences University in 1975 and showing that omega-3 fatty acids from fish prevented blood clots and lowered blood triglyceride. Additional work led to the introduction of omega-3 enriched infant formula.
Now in his 80s and a professor of endocrinology, diabetes and clinical nutrition at the Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU) School of Medicine, Connor continues to study and publish. He also sees patients two mornings a week and plans to keep working as long as he can.
"There's so much to find out," he said. "As long as the brain is working and the body is working, this is the most interesting thing I can do."
Connor emphasizes that knowledge must be communicated if it's to prove useful. To that end he has authored three books on healthy, low-fat cooking with his research partner and wife, Sonja, a research associate professor of medicine at OHSU.
"I'm very interested in the health of society," he said. "We need to translate science into social and political reality." |
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