Arthur Joseph McCullough, Jr., 58th President, AASLD
Authors: Albert J. Czaja, Anthony S. Tavill
Journal: Hepatology (2008)

It is time to introduce Arthur J. McCullough, Jr as the 58th President of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD). Many already know Art from his numerous scientific presentations at national meetings of the AASLD, his participation in regional, national, and international courses, and his interactive meet-the-professor sessions and workshops. These forums have showcased his expertise in the diagnosis, management, and investigation of liver disease, his qualities as a lucid, experienced, and thoughtful clinician-investigator-teacher, and the gentle wit, keen insights, and naturalness that relax his audiences and ensure their receptivity. Arthur Joseph McCullough, Jr. What is not well known is the "essence" of this creative thinker and motivator—the qualities that have allowed him to chair two top-flight Divisions of Gastroenterology, compete successfully for research funding since 1977, garner four institutional teaching awards, motivate numerous young physicians, and maintain a clinical excellence that is enthusiastically endorsed by his many patients. Perhaps this "essence" can never be fully understood, but the effort is justified because Art's own penchant is to understand the core basis for all clinical phenomena. Art was born in New York and completed his Bachelor of Science degree at Fordham University. He then received his M.D. degree at the State University of New York (SUNY) at Syracuse. After completing his residency in internal medicine at the Cleveland Clinic and after initially considering a career in cardiology, he changed direction to become a G.I. fellow with Dr. William H. J. Summerskill at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN. Following the untimely death of Bill Summerskill, Art became an NIH fellow in Gastroenterology, working in the laboratory of V.L.W. Go, M.D. Art interfaced with fellow trainees Laurence J. Miller and Russell H. Weisner, and these interactions undoubtedly generated an abiding interest in clinical research, homeostatic metabolic mechanisms, and liver disease. Curiosity, intelligence, and creativity were characteristics even at this early stage, and they were evident in his studies of insulin, glucagon and gastric inhibitory peptide, the amino acid abnormalities in severe liver disease, the serological assessment of hepatic fibrosis, the malnutrition of cirrhosis, and the etiologic uncertainties of fulminant hepatitis. Art quietly assimilated clinical conundrums into testable clinical hypotheses, and in 1980 he earned the prestigious J. Arnold Bargen Award for clinical, research, and teaching excellence at the Mayo Clinic. It was with great personal satisfaction that we were able to persuade Art to retransplant his considerable talents back to Cleveland, OH in 1980, initially at the Case Western Reserve School of Medicine and Cleveland Metropolitan General Hospital (now the MetroHealth Medical Center) (1980-2006), where he succeeded to the post of Division Chief in 1991. More recently, he was appointed Director of Gastroenterology at the Cleveland Clinic and the Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve (2006-present), following a long line of eminent predecessors. During his years in Cleveland, Art quickly met the challenge and applied his characteristic ingenuity to fashion tools to advance his research and clinical interests. He developed a rat model to assess the behavior of gonadal and anterior pituitary hormones after portacaval anastomosis, he assessed drugs to promote ulcer healing, and he refined diagnostic criteria for the detection of bacterial infection in ascites. With his colleagues Kevin Mullen and Satish Kalhan, he innovatively exploited the use of stable isotopes to evaluate protein and amino acid metabolism in chronic liver disease. He embarked on novel studies of the multiple disturbances of energy and nitrogen metabolism in the hepatic manifestations of the metabolic syndrome, and he targeted nonalcoholic fatty liver disease as the central theme of his research efforts. Art's subsequent successes as funded investigator, division chairman, esteemed mentor, and admired clinician revealed yet additional virtues. Success in these domains would not have been possible without patience, humility, honesty, and commitment. As we all know but are often remiss in recognizing, the presence of a supportive and inspiring spouse is for many the mortar that holds together the bricks of academic achievement. Art has been blessed with a wonderful wife, Mary, a native Clevelander whom he met during his residency, and by three lovely children, Jessie, Katie, and A.J., who have aided all his endeavors. His ability to balance his heavy administrative, teaching, and research responsibilities with a warm family life would not have been possible without their unwavering support. Art has been a loyal advocate of his colleagues and his patients. His clinical and administrative decisions have always been balanced and well-founded. As a leader, his major self-interest has been the success of those around him. Art's ability to find the most logical, fair, and effective direction has been evident in every aspect of his professional life, and it now promises to energize and strengthen our organization. One can never fully know or appreciate the true "essence" of an individual, but those of us close to Art's "essence" see qualities that truly distinguish him and his work. They are virtues that will steer our organization on a correct course. We have an able helmsman and an exciting, secure journey ahead!