Dr. Benatar, MBChB, MS, DPhil, is a Professor of Neurology at the University of Miami. He is the Principal Investigator (PI) of the research studies initiated by ARC, and the site-PI of other studies that ARC participates in. He hails from South Africa, which explains the funny degree behind his name.   

Is a Professor of Neurology and the Chief of the Neuromuscular Division in the Department of Neurology at the University of Miami. He is also the first incumbent of the Walter Bradley Chair in ALS Research. Dr. Benatar earned his medical degree from the University of Cape Town in South Africa and his PhD in Neuroscience at Oxford University in the United Kingdom. He also has a Masters in Science in Clinical Research, which he acquired at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. He completed his Neurology Residency and a Neurophysiology Fellowship at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, Massachusetts. He is board certified in Neurology, Clinical Neurophysiology and Electrodiagnostic Medicine. He leads an active program of clinical and translational ALS research that encompasses clinical trials, genetics, and the development of physiological and imaging biomarkers. His research program is devoted to understanding the reasons why therapy development efforts have not been successful in the past and to development of effective treatments for patients with ALS.