Louis Kunkel, PhD
Basil Darras, MD
Dr. Basil Darras is Associate Neurologist-in-Chief and Chief of the Division of Clinical Neurology at Boston Children’s Hospital (BCH), where he also serves as Director of the Neuromuscular Program. He holds the Joseph J. Volpe Chair in Neurology at Harvard Medical School (HMS). His career focuses on pediatric neuromuscular disorders, particularly spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) and muscular dystrophies, which benefit from multidisciplinary, multicenter collaboration. He is therefore frequently involved in studies that unite investigators in efforts to develop effective therapies and broaden understanding of the genetic causes and progression of neuromuscular disorders. Collaborations include the Muscular Dystrophy Association’s Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy Clinical Research Network, the NIH’s NeuroNEXT Network, and the SMA Foundation’s Pediatric Neuromuscular Clinical Research (PNCR) network.
Through numerous publications and conference presentations, Dr. Darras has influenced clinical care in the field of pediatric neuromuscular diseases both nationally and internationally. His many accomplishments include descriptions of novel mutations in patients with neuromuscular diseases and the application of new technologies to explore the pathogenesis of congenital myopathies and muscular dystrophies. He has received several awards, including Teaching of the Year and Outstanding Teacher awards from the BCH Neurology Department, and has achieved worldwide recognition as a leader in the field of neuromuscular disorders.
Dr. Darras is an editor of both the first and second editions of the definitive textbook, Neuromuscular Disorders in Infancy, Childhood and Adolescence: A Clinician’s Approach, a standard of reference for clinical and clinical research neurologists.