Robert P. Friedland is a distinguished clinical research neurologist and academic leader internationally recognized for his work in cognitive neurology, Alzheimer’s disease, neurogeriatrics, and neurodegenerative disorders. With more than five decades of experience in clinical care, research, and medical education, he has made significant contributions to understanding brain aging and the relationship between lifestyle, the microbiome, and neurodegeneration.

Dr. Friedland currently serves as the Mary and Mason Rudd Chair and Professor at the University of Louisville, where he also leads the Laboratory of Neurogeriatrics. His research focuses on the mechanisms underlying Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, and Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), with particular emphasis on how intestinal bacteria and environmental factors influence neurodegenerative processes.

He earned his MD from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in 1973 and completed his neurology residency there. Over the course of his career, he has held several prominent academic and research positions, including work at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and serving as Chief of the Section on Brain Aging at the National Institute on Aging from 1985 to 1990. He later joined Case Western Reserve University as a professor, where he worked from 1990 to 2008 before moving to Louisville, where he served as Department Chair from 2008-2013.

Dr. Friedland has authored more than 220 scientific publications examining risk and protective factors for Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias. His work has helped advance understanding of preventive approaches to cognitive decline, including the roles of diet, exercise, intellectual activity, and the gut microbiome. He has also maintained extensive international collaborations with institutions in Japan, the United Kingdom, and Israel, including research partnerships with Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine.

In addition to his scientific contributions, Dr. Friedland is the author of several books for both professional and public audiences, including Unaging: The Four Factors That Impact How You Age and 99 Lessons in Critical Thinking. Throughout his career, he has secured substantial research funding from the National Institutes of Health and other organizations, supporting innovative studies in aging and neurodegeneration. In 2025–2026, he was named a Long-Term Invitational Fellow of the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, recognizing his ongoing global impact in neuroscience research.