Dr. Dalmau received his MD and PhD from the Autonoma University of Barcelona.  He trained in Neuro-oncology at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York, after which he joined the faculty. After 11 years at Memorial, he became co-director of Neuro-oncology at the University of Arkansas. In 2002 he was appointed Professor of Neurology at the University of Pennsylvania. He is currently ICREA Research Professor at the Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Clinic Hospital, Barcelona, Associate Professor of Medicine, University of Barcelona, Adjunct Professor of Neurology, University of Pennsylvania, and Guest Researcher, National Institutes of Health, USA. He is Editor of Neurology: Neuroimmunology and Neuroinflammation. Dr. Dalmau is a member of many academic societies including the National Academy of Medicine, USA and has received numerous awards, including the Premio Rey Jaime I, Spain. 

Research interests

My research focuses on the study of immune-mediated diseases of the nervous system. Although this work initially focused on cancer associated (paraneoplastic) disorders, it evolved with our discovery of a group of immune-mediated disorders of memory, behavior, cognition and psychosis. These disorders, known as autoimmune encephalitis, occur in association with immune-responses to neuronal cell-surface proteins or synaptic receptors involved in synaptic transmission and plasticity. Dysfunction of these receptors has been related to schizophrenia, psychosis, epilepsy, abnormal movements, and cognitive decline. My research group carries out translational studies including the identification of novel autoimmune encephalitis, the development of diagnostic tests and treatment strategies, as well as basic studies aimed at elucidating the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying the immune-mediated brain dysfunction.