April 2024 Featured Researcher: Dr. Elliott Sherr, MD, PhD

Compiled and Edited by Miriam Bernard

Dr. Elliott Sherr is the founder and Principal Investigator of the Brain Development Research Program. He is a Child Neurologist, and is invested in explaining the genetics of neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism and epilepsy, with a particular focus in structural brain malformations such as agenesis of the corpus callosum (ACC). In addition, Dr. Sherr co-directs the neurometabolic program and clinic at UCSF, and is an active attending physician in the division of child neurology. Dr. Sherr is involved with both the NODCC and the research international collaborative, IRC5 (International Research Consortium for the Corpus Callosum and Cerebral Connectivity). He has been on the NODCC board and scientific advisory board for 10+ years

Dr. Sherr was the recipient of the Philip R. Dodge Young Investigator Award from the Child Neurology Society and the Child Neurology Foundation Scientific Award.

He completed his undergraduate education in Biology and Philosophy at Stanford University, and attained his MD and PhD degrees at Columbia University (https://www.cumc.columbia.edu/mdphd/alumni). He trained in Pediatrics and completed his residency in Child Neurology at UCSF, where he also completed a research fellowship prior to opening his own lab. Dr. Sherr has been recognized in San Francisco Magazine’s Top Doctors list since 2015.

The participants in Dr. Sherr’s current research include individuals with DCCs. He and his team are seeking gene discovery and are working to understand gene/clinical outcome correlations. Participants provide a sample of DNA from blood from the person with a DCC and both of their parents. Dr. Sherr states that his goal is to provide guidance for families based on he and his team’s work, and hopes their findings will hold significance for families working to better understand DCCs.

The NODCC is grateful to Dr. Elliott Sherr and his team for their significant and tireless contributions to DCC and ACC research! Study coordinator Alison Walmsley can offer more information about current studies and participation, and can be contacted at alison.walmsley@ucsf.edu. To learn more about Dr. Sherr’s research, visit https://brain.ucsf.edu/.