Brett McCray, M.D., Ph.D.

Brett A. McCray, M.D., Ph.D., is a physician scientist who leads a basic, translational, and clinical research program and also sees patients with neuromuscular disease. He is currently an Assistant Professor in Neurology at the University of Michigan. He received his M.D. and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Pennsylvania, where he worked with Dr. J. Paul Taylor on the pathogenesis of hereditary neuropathy due to mutations in Rab7. He then completed a neurology residency at the Mass General-Brigham Neurology program, followed by a neuromuscular fellowship at Johns Hopkins. He leads a research group focused on furthering the understanding and treatment of peripheral neuropathy, particularly inherited forms of peripheral neuropathy such as Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT) disease. The lab is primarily focused on inherited neuropathy caused by mutations in the calcium-permeable ion channel TRPV4 (transient receptor potential vanilloid 4) that cause a range of conditions, including CMT type 2C, scapuloperoneal spinal muscular atrophy, and congenital distal spinal muscular atrophy. The McCray lab combines the study of cultured cells and analysis of animal models of disease to elucidate pathways important in the pathogenesis of TRPV4 neuropathy and other forms of neuropathy. The lab is also involved in clinical and translational research efforts to help bring insights from the bench to patients affected by various forms of hereditary neuropathy, with a particular focus on TRPV4-related disease.