Clifford Lab
David Clifford, MD
David Clifford, MD, is the Melba and Forest Seay Professor of Clinical Neuropharmacology in Neurology at Washington University in St. Louis. A primary career goal has been to improve therapeutics for neurological disorders with a particular focus on neurological complications of HIV. Since 1993, he has led the Neurologic AIDS Research Consortium, an NIH funded national research group designed to develop improved therapy for neuroAIDS complications. He is the principal investigator of the AIDS Clinical Trials Unit at Washington University which is the premier international NIH funded AIDS therapeutic network. He is also an active investigator in the CHARTER study, a multicenter epidemiologic group studying neuroAIDS. He currently is co-PI for the Vanderbilt AIDS Clinical Trials Unit, which includes the Washington University Clinical Research Site. He has a specific focus on understanding the interaction of aging in the setting of chronic HIV infection.
Clifford is also the principal investigator for the Washington University NeuroNEXT trial unit, one of 25 centers designed to accelerate Phase 2 clinical trials for neurological disorders. He has led international research relevant to HIV and the nervous system in Ethiopia, Uganda, The Gambia, Guinea Bissau, Senegal and Thailand. He is also currently participating as an investigator at the Knight Alzheimer Disease Research projects at Washington University and is medical director for the Dominant Inherited Alzheimer Disease Treatment Trial (DIAN-TU) — the first pre-symptomatic controlled trial for treatment to prevent the onset of dementia in the inherited form of Alzheimer Disease.
Principal investigator

David Clifford, MD
Professor, Neurology and Medicine
Melba and Forest Seay Professor of Clinical Neuropharmacology in Neurology
Head, Section of Neuroinfectious Diseases
- Phone: 314-747-8423
Recent publications
- Twelve-year neurocognitive decline in HIV is associated with comorbidities, not age: a CHARTER studyTwelve-year neurocognitive decline in HIV is associated with comorbidities, not age: a CHARTER studyHeaton, R. K., Ellis, R. J., Tang, B., Marra, C. M., Rubin, L. H., Clifford, D. B., McCutchan, J. A., Gelman, B. B., Morgello, S., Franklin, D. R. & Letendre, S. L., Mar 1 2023, In: Brain : a journal of neurology. 146, 3, p. 1121-1131 11 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Progressive Multifocal Leukoencephalopathy Treated by Immune Checkpoint Inhibitorsfor the Immunotherapy for PML Study Group, Feb 2023, In: Annals of neurology. 93, 2, p. 257-270 14 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Neurosarcoidosis: A call to armsHardy, T. A. & Clifford, D. B., Dec 15 2022, In: Journal of Neuroimmunology. 373, 577990.Research output: Contribution to journal › Editorial
- Post-acute sensory neurological sequelae in patients with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection: The COVID-PN observational cohort studyOdozor, C. U., Kannampallil, T., Ben Abdallah, A., Roles, K., Burk, C., Warner, B. C., Alaverdyan, H., Clifford, D. B., Piccirillo, J. & Haroutounian, S., Dec 1 2022, In: Pain. 163, 12, p. 2398-2410 13 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review
- Amyloid-Related Imaging Abnormalities in the DIAN-TU-001 Trial of Gantenerumab and Solanezumab: Lessons from a Trial in Dominantly Inherited Alzheimer DiseaseFor the Dominantly Inherited Alzheimer Network Trials Unit, Nov 2022, In: Annals of neurology. 92, 5, p. 729-744 16 p.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review