A native of Los Angeles, Dr. Meyer graduated from Los Angeles High School and earned both his B.A. and PhD in Biology from UCLA. He moved to Europe to become a Researcher/Instructor in Biochemistry at the University of Basel in Switzerland, and became a research group leader in Cell Biology and the Dean of Graduate Studies at the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) in Heidelberg, Germany. In 1987, Dr. Meyer returned to the US and to UCLA to join the department of Biological Chemistry at the David Geffen School of Medicine. His research which focused on the structure, function and biogenesis of cellular membranes, resulted in numerous peer-reviewed publications, including articles in Nature, Cell and the Journal of Cell Biology.
In addition to teaching and research at UCLA, Dr. Meyer served as Faculty Research Coordinator, Associate Dean for Basic Science Programs and Senior Associate Dean for Graduate Studies in the School of Medicine. In 1993 he established UCLA ACCESS to Programs in the Molecular and Cellular Life Sciences, and served as its director through 2004. Upon becoming emeritus professor at UCLA, Dr. Meyer assumed the position of Vice President for Research and Scientific Affairs at the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, followed by serving as the Executive Vice President for Research at the House Ear Institute, in Los Angeles before coming to The Lundquist Institute.