David L. Coleman, MD

Biography

The initial focus of Dr. Coleman’s original scholarship was in the regulation of macrophage activation and proliferation. He identified novel factors that induce macrophage phagocytic function and oxidative metabolism. He went on to characterize the mechanisms by which macrophages are activated, recruited, retained, and induced to proliferate in local tissues. His research team discovered production of Granulocyte-Macrophage Colony Stimulating Factor (GM-CSF) by non-immunological cell and tissue types such as keratinocytes (skin), glomerular mesangial cells (kidney), and respiratory epithelium (trachea). His team also identified production of other soluble cytokines (Macrophage CSF and Interleukin 6) by local tissues that regulate cell traffic and inflammation, particularly in the skin and kidney – two common sites of inflammation and infection. His later studies focused on the subcellular mechanisms of macrophage activation and proliferation induced by GM-CSF.

He further delineated the effect of GM-CSF on intracellular second messenger pathways (e.g., cyclic nucleotides, protein kinase C) and early response genes (e.g., Egr-1) in macrophages. He defined the role of cis-acting 3’ regulatory elements in mediating the transcriptional activation of Egr-1 in macrophages. These studies were designed to characterize paracrine and autocrine signals that regulate cells in local tissues in states of inflammation and infection, and to better understand how therapies might be targeted at the extracellular and intracellular signals that underlie the inflammatory process. His work over the past 15 years has focused on medical and civic professionalism in medical education and clinical practice. He has developed incentive plans that promote physician productivity in an academically affiliated VA Medical Center and at Yale School of Medicine. In addition, he has led efforts at Yale and Boston University Schools of Medicine to develop more effective and rigorous policies for the interactions of clinicians with the pharmaceutical and medical device industries. Dr. Coleman’s clinical responsibilities include serving as an inpatient medical attending and infectious disease consult attending at Boston Medical Center.