The long-time dean of Harvard Medical School is stepping down next month and already the rumor mills are churning about who will take his place. The Globe and some Harvard people speaking off the record to the Globe seem to like to fuel the gossip, so I guess I’ll join in too.

The Globe is reporting that Elizabeth Nabel, head of the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (if named, she would be the first woman to lead HMS), and Jeffrey Flier, chief academic officer of Beth Israel, are top candidates. Harvard’s incoming president, Drew Faust, will be making the final hiring decision.