Howard Feldman (neuroscientist)

Career

Following his MDCM from McGill University, Dr. Feldman undertook his residency training in Internal Medicine and Neurology at McGill University, University of Colorado, and University of British Columbia where he also completed a fellowship with focus on amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and neuromuscular diseases. He held academic ranks at the University of British Columbia in the Division of Neurology, Department of Medicine, from clinical instructor 1991, clinical assistant and clinical associate professor with promotion to full professor in 2001.

He served as the head of a number of academic programs at UBC including its Alzheimer Clinical Trials Program, its head injury program and in 2005 its Clinic for Alzheimer's Disease and Related Disorders. He served as Head of the Division of Neurology, Department of Medicine at UBC from 2001 to 2008 before a secondment to Bristol-Meyers Squibb from 2009 to 2011 where he served as vice-president and Therapeutic Area Head of Neuroscience for Global Clinical Research and Development. He returned to UBC in 2012 where he resumed his clinical and academic activities while also serving as Executive Associate Dean of Research for UBC Faculty of Medicine. He joined UC San Diego in 2016 to take on the leadership of the Alzheimer's Disease Cooperative Study and to serve as Dean for Alzheimer's Disease and Neurodegenerative Research.

He currently holds Affiliate Faculty membership at the University of British Columbia Department of Medicine since 2016 and Professor Adjunct at Yale University School of Medicine since 2011. He served as adjunct professor at McGill University Center for Aging from 1995 till 2022.

Research

He has contributed to scientific discoveries and clinical research studies focused on aging, mild cognitive impairment (MCI), Alzheimer's disease (AD), frontotemporal dementia (FTD), and diagnostic/therapeutic trials. He has led several international clinical trials in AD resulting in important original data and informing care across the continuum of the disease. In the field of frontotemporal dementia, he has contributed to the discoveries of the progranulin and C9ORF72 genetic mutations as well as to the elucidation of TDP43.

His research focuses on the epidemiology, natural history and experimental therapeutics of Alzheimer's disease and dementia within an approach that includes longitudinal observational cohort studies in clinical and population samples, disease modelling, clinical pathological correlative studies and clinical trials across the spectrum of preclinical to most severe dementia stages. These interests have included the development of novel diagnostic criteria for Alzheimer's disease.

He contributed to the discoveries of the progranulin and C9ORF72 genetic mutations which cause FTD and FTD with motor neuron disease.

Industry experience

From 2009 to2011, he took a leave from his academic appointment at UBC to take on a senior leadership role as therapeutic area head for neuroscience global clinical research at Bristol-Myers Squibb, where his research focused on developing novel pharmaceutical therapies for neurodegenerative and other neurological/psychiatric disorders.

Academic research (selected articles)

• Mohr E, Feldman HH, and Gauthier SG. Canadian Guidelines for the Development of Anti-dementia Therapies: A Conceptual Summary. Canadian Journal of Neurological Sciences 1995; 22: 62–71.
• Feldman HH, Gauthier S, Hecker J, Vellas B, Subbiah P, and Whalen E. A 24-Week, Randomized, Double-Blind Study of Donepezil in Moderate to Severe Alzheimer's Disease.
• Feldman HH, Scheltens P, Scarpini E, Herrmann N, Mesenbrink P, Mancione L, Tekin S, Lane R, and Ferris S. Behavioral symptoms in mild cognitive impairment: Findings from the InDDEx Study.
• Feldman HH, Ferris S, Winblad B, Sfikas N, Mancione L, He Y, Tekin S, Burns A, Cummings J, Del Ser T, Inzitari D, Orgogozo JM, Sauer H, Scheltens P, Scarpini E, Herrmann N, Farlow M, Potkin S, Charles HC, Fox NC, Lane R. Effect of rivastigmine on delay to diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease from mild cognitive impairment: The InDDEx study.
• Coric V, Salloway S, van Dyck CH, Dubois B, Andreasen N, Brody M, Curtis C, Soininen H, Thein S, Shiovitz T, Pilcher G, Ferris S, Colby S, Kerselaers W, Dockens R, Soares H, Kaplita S, Luo F, Pachai C, Bracoud L, Mintun M, Grill J, Marek K, Seibyl J, Cedarbaum JM, Albright C, HH Feldman, Berman RM. Targeting Prodromal Alzheimer Disease with Avagacestat: A Randomized Clinical Trial.
• Schneider LS, Thomas RG, Hendrix S, Rissman RA, Brewer JB, Salmon DP, Oltersdorf T, Okuda T, and Feldman HH, Alzheimer's Disease Cooperative Study TCAD Group: The safety and efficacy of edonerpic maleate (T-817MA) in patients with mild to moderate Alzheimer's disease. JAMA Neurology.
• Matthews DC, Ritter A, Thomas RG, Andrews RD, Lukic AS, Revta C, Kinney JW, Tousi B, Leverenz JB, Fillit H, Zhong K, Feldman HH, Cummings J. Rasagiline effects on glucose metabolism, cognition, and tau in Alzheimer's dementia.
• Rafii M, Sol O, Mobley WC, Delpretti S, Skotko BG...Feldman HH. A Phase 1b Multi Center, Double Blind, Randomized, Placebo Controlled Dose Escalation Study of the Safety, Tolerability, and Immunogenicity of ACI-24 in Adults with Down syndrome.
• Feldman HH, Luchsinger JA, Léger GC, Taylor C, Jacobs DM, Salmon DP, Edland SD, Messer K, Revta C, Flowers SA, Jones KS, Koulman A, Yarasheski KE, Verghese PB, Venkatesh V, Zetterberg H, Durant J, Lupo JL, Gibson GE; ADCS BenfoTeam Study Group. Protocol for a seamless phase 2A-phase 2B randomized double-blind placebo-controlled trial to evaluate the safety and efficacy of benfotiamine in patients with early Alzheimer's disease (BenfoTeam).5.