David G. Amaral, Ph.D.

David G. Amaral, Ph.D is a Professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the University of California, Davis. Dr. Amaral was named the Beneto Foundation Chair and Research Director of the M.I.N.D. Institute in 1998. The M.I.N.D. Institute is dedicated to understanding the biological bases of autism and other neurodevelopmental disorders with the goal of developing preventative measures and innovative treatments. Dr. Amaral was a founding member of the M.I.N.D. Institute and has been charged with guiding the overall research mission of the Institute. As Research Director at the M.I.N.D. Institute, he is currently coordinating a comprehensive and multidisciplinary analysis of children with autism called the Autism Phenome Project to define biomedical characteristics of different types of autism. This project will lead to more effective hypothesis driven research on the causes of each type of autism and ultimately to more effective treatments. Dr. Amaral received his BS from Northwestern University and his Ph.D from the University of Rochester Neuroscience and Psychology. He conducted postdoctoral research at the Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology at Washington University. He then spent 13 years at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies.

To learn more about Dr. Amaral, visit the UC Davis Mind Institute’s website.

Learn more about Dr. Amaral’s research at PubMed.