Daniel Geschwind

Scientific careerFieldsHuman genetics, neurogeneticsInstitutionsUniversity of California, Los AngelesDoctoral advisorSusan Hockfield

Daniel H. Geschwind is an American physician-scientist whose laboratory has made pioneering discoveries in the biology of brain disorders and the genetic and genomic analyses of the nervous system. His laboratory showed that gene co-expression has a reproducible network structure that can be used to understand neurobiological mechanisms in health, evolution, and disease.^[2][3][4] He led the first studies to define the molecular pathology of autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and several other psychiatric disorders,^[5][6][7] and has made major contributions to defining the genetic basis of autism.^[8][9][10]

Currently, he is the Gordon and Virginia MacDonald Distinguished Professor of Human Genetics, Neurology and Psychiatry at the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). He also directs the UCLA Neurogenetics Program and the UCLA Center for Autism Research and Treatment (CART).^{[11] [12]} Since March 1, 2016, he has served as the Senior Associate Dean and Associate Vice Chancellor for Precision Medicine at UCLA.^[13]

Geschwind received his A.B. degree in psychology and chemistry at Dartmouth College, and his MD/PhD at Yale School of Medicine under the supervision of Susan Hockfield, graduating Alpha Omega Alpha^[14].^[12] He then completed an internship at UCLA,^[11] and has been a member of the UCLA faculty since 1997.^[12]

Currently, he is the Gordon and Virginia MacDonald Distinguished Professor of Human Genetics, Neurology and Psychiatry at the David Geffen School of Medicine at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). He has served as the Senior Associate Dean and Associate Vice Chancellor for Precision Health at UCLA since March, 2016. He also founded and directs the UCLA Neurogenetics Program and the UCLA Center for Autism Research and Treatment (CART).^[15] He has trained over 70 graduate students and post-doctoral research fellows,^[16] and is among the highest cited scientists in neurology, neuroscience, systems biology, and precision health (H index > 195).^[17] He has been named in Clarivate Analytics’ Highly Cited Researchers list each year since 2017.^[18]

Geschwind has served on several scientific advisory boards and review committees, including the Faculty of 1000 Medicine, the Executive Committee of the American Neurological Association, the Scientific Advisory Board for the Allen Institute for Brain Science, the NIMH Advisory Council and the NIH Council of Councils, and served as the first chair of Cure Autism Now's scientific review committee.^[19][20] Geschwind has been elected as member of the National Academy of Medicine and the Association of American Physicians.^[20]

He has also been the Kavli Distinguished Visiting Professor at UCSD (2007), Visiting Professor at the Institute of Psychiatry, Kings College, London (2009-2010), the Wiersma Visiting Professor at Caltech (2012), and a Visiting Scientist at Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, Cambridge UK (2009-2010) and an Affiliate Professor, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen.^[21]

The Geschwind Lab at the UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine conducts research into three areas: autism and language, human cognitive specializations, and neurodegenerative syndromes.^[12][22] The overarching goal of Geschwind’s work is to develop a more mechanistic understanding of neurodevelopmental and neurodegenerative diseases by integrative analyses that connect human genetic variation to genes and neurobiological pathways. Through functional genomics and large-scale data analyses that permit a more unbiased understanding of disease mechanisms, his laboratory’s research has improved  our understanding of human brain evolution and language, ASD and schizophrenia, repair of the damaged nervous system and neurodegenerative dementias including Frontotemporal Dementia, Progressive Supranuclear Palsy and Alzheimer’s disease. Together these studies have not only improved understanding of human brain disorders, but they also highlight the power of highly-parallel, high-throughput  biology.^[23]

Geschwind has published research on numerous genes involved in language, such as FOXP2, and how they differ between humans and chimpanzees.^[24][25] In 2011, he was the senior author of a study that identified chemical differences between the brains of people with autism and those without it.^[26] Specifically, the study found common patterns in gene expression in the frontal and temporal lobes of autistic individuals.^[27] Additionally, Geschwind is known for his research into factors affecting handedness and the differences in brain structure between left-handed and right-handed people.^[28][29]

Geschwind established the modern era of autism genetics research by developing and leading the Autism Genetic Resource Exchange (AGRE)^[30] with the Cure Autism Now Foundation in 1997. AGRE was the first major community resource for genetic research on autism spectrum disorder (ASD), making biomaterials and phenotype data accessible to researchers worldwide. This initiative opened the field to many more researchers and led to significant discoveries, including the role of rare mutations and inherited variations in ASD.^[10] He is an advocate for data sharing and is currently chair of the PsychENCODE consortium, a public genomic data resource.

His work in autism genetics and functional genomics has been highly influential, focusing on translating genetic findings into biological understanding. He developed the concept of ASD as a developmental disconnection syndrome, recognizing its extreme heterogeneity and framing it as “the autisms.” Geschwind pioneered the study of language and social endophenotypes in genetic studies and demonstrated how transcriptomic and epigenetic profiling could define the molecular pathology of ASD and other neuropsychiatric disorders. Over the last decade, he has led efforts to increase diversity and inclusion in autism research, spearheading the only genetics study of African Americans, now in its seventh year.^[10] Over the last 10 years, he and his collaborators, including John Constantino and Ami Klin, have been working as an Autism Center of Excellence Network^[31] to increase the representation of groups that have been historically underrepresented in autism research.^[32]

His brother, Michael Geschwind, is also a professor of neurology. Norman Geschwind, a pioneer in behavioral neurology, is his father’s first cousin. From 1965 to 1982, his father, Stanley Geschwind, served as the head of the Quantum and Solid-State Physics Department at Bell Labs.^[33][34][8]

• 2022 Rhoda and Bernard Sarnat International Prize in Mental Health from the National Academy of Medicine^[10]
• 2022 Cotzias Award and Lecture, American Academy of Neurology^[21]
• 2021 Gold Medal, Society for Biological Psychiatry^[35]
• 2015 Paul G Allen Distinguished Investigator Award^[36]
• 2012 Ruane Prize for Outstanding Achievement in Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Research from the Brain & Behavior Research Foundation^[9]
• 2011 Elected Member, National Academy of Medicine^[10]
• 2008 Scientific Service Award from Autism Speaks^[15]
• 2006 NIH MERIT Award^[37]
• 2004 Derek Denny-Brown Neurological Scholar Award from the American Neurological Association^[11]