Gavin Giovannoni was appointed in November 2006 to the Chair of Neurology, Blizard Institute, Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Queen Mary University London and the Department of Neurology, Barts Health NHS Trust. Gavin did his undergraduate medical training at the University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa, where he graduated cum laude in 1987. He moved to the Institute of Neurology, Queen Square, London in 1993 after completing his specialist training in neurology in South Africa. After three years as a clinical research fellow, under Professor Ed Thompson, and a further two years as the Scarfe Lecturer, working for Professor W. Ian McDonald, in 1998 he was awarded a PhD in immunology from the University of London. He was appointed as a Clinical Senior Lecturer, Royal Free and University College Medical School, in 1998, and moved back to the Institute of Neurology, Queen Square in 1999. He was promoted to Reader in Neuroimmunology in 2004.

Gavin’s clinical interests are multiple sclerosis and other inflammatory disorders of the central nervous system. He is particularly interested in clinical issues related to optimising MS disease-modifying therapies. His current research is focused on: the Epstein Barr virus as a possible cause of multiple sclerosis; defining the ‘multiple sclerosis endophenotype’; multiple sclerosis-related neurodegeneration, or ‘smouldering MS’; multiple sclerosis biomarker discovery; multiple sclerosis clinical outcomes; and (previously) immune tolerance strategies. His team focuses on translational research and therefore has an active clinical trial programme. Gavin is also an avid reader, blogger, runner and lover of technology. He has been involved in the development and validation of several innovations to communicate complex information to people with MS and their families (see ClinicSpeak, MS Brain Health and Digesting Science). Gavin has a vision of the future where patients and healthcare professionals will meet in a hybrid world that is transformed by technology.