Sean J. Pittock, MD
Mayo Clinic

Dr. Sean J. Pittock is Professor of Neurology, Director of the Neuroimmunology Laboratory and the Center for MS and Autoimmune Neurology at the Mayo Clinic. His expertise is in the laboratory and clinic-based diagnosis and management of immune-mediated neurological disorders. He is considered a leader in the field of glial autoimmunity as it pertains to inflammatory CNS demyelinating diseases including MS. He currently serves as the chair of the Autoimmune Neurology Section at the American Academy Neurology. Dr. Pittock’s research is translational, and is focused on 1) the identification of novel biomarkers of autoimmune neurological diseases (antibodies to AQP4, GFAP, MAP1B-IgG, Kelch11); 2) the clinical application of laboratory-based tests in diagnosis and outcome prediction for patients with autoimmune and paraneoplastic neurological disorders; 3) optimizing the clinical management of autoimmune and paraneoplastic neurological disorders. He currently directs the Mayo Clinic Neuroimmunology Laboratory which tests approximately 200,000 patients for comprehensive neural antibody profiles (CAP and New York State certified) pertinent to inflammatory CNS disorders. As Director of the Center for MS and Autoimmune Neurology at Mayo Clinic, Dr. Pittock has assisted in building the largest biorepository of blood and cerebrospinal fluid samples from MS and inflammatory CNS disorders in the world. Their Laboratory also provides testing for biomarkers of type 1 diabetes allowing collection and storage of more than 1000 serum samples. Dr. Pittock’s research has been supported by Mayo Clinic, NIH (R01) and the Guthy-Jackson Charitable Foundation. He has published more than 300 peer reviewed papers in the field of MS and Autoimmune Neurology. Dr. Pittock recently co-edited the first textbook of Autoimmune Neurology.

Dean M. Wingerchuk, MD, MSc, FRCP(C)
Mayo Clinic

Dean M. Wingerchuk, MD, MSc, FRCP(C) is Professor and Chair of the Department of Neurology at Mayo Clinic in Phoenix and Scottsdale, Arizona. He obtained his medical degree at the University of Saskatchewan and completed a neurology residency at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. He completed successive fellowship programs in clinical neuroimmunology at Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, and at the University of Western Ontario, London, Canada. He also holds a Masters degree in Clinical Epidemiology and Health Research Methodology from McMaster University in Hamilton, Canada.

Dr. Wingerchuk’s clinical and research interests focus on neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder (NMOSD) and multiple sclerosis. He is the principal investigator for two NMOSD therapeutic studies and leads international collaborations that aim to improve NMOSD diagnosis and evaluation of outcomes.