Both Ends of the Spectrum: Talking Obesity Science With Samuel Klein, MD

The Endocrine Society’s 2026 recipient of the Outstanding Clinical Investigator Laureate Award, Samuel Klein, MD, has spent the better part of the last 30 years researching why obesity affects people differently. He talks to Endocrine News about this perplexing dilemma and how he hopes his research could one day help solve this puzzle.

For more than three decades, Samuel Klein, MD, has pondered a seemingly simple question: why do some people with obesity develop serious metabolic disease while others remain remarkably healthy? The answers — grounded in meticulous human studies and translational science — have transformed how clinicians and researchers understand fat biology and metabolic risk.

In recognition of these contributions, the Endocrine Society has named Klein one of its 2026 Laureates, awarding him the Outstanding Clinical Investigator Award. Klein is the William H.

Danforth Professor of Medicine and Nutritional Science at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, Mo.

He is also the director of the Center for Human Nutrition and the Division of Nutritional Science & Obesity Medicine.