Michael Eriksen Benros

Michael Eriksen Benros is a Clinical Professor at the Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Copenhagen, and heads the Biological and Precision Psychiatry unit at Mental Health Centre Copenhagen, Copenhagen University Hospital. He serves as a board member of the Psychiatric Immunology Section of the World Psychiatric Association and is co-PI on the DanFunD study.

Dr. Benros is a leading expert in Immuno-Psychiatry, Biological Psychiatry, Epidemiology, and Precision Psychiatry. His research focuses on the intersection of immune-related factors and mental illness, utilizing Danish nationwide registers, biobanks, and clinical studies. He leads significant efforts to understand the role of the immune system in severe mental disorders through immunogenetic investigations and novel research on cerebrospinal fluid and blood samples from patients with psychotic and affective disorders.

His most recent publications (2025) demonstrate a continued focus on neuroimmunology, with studies examining the neurological impacts of COVID-19, perinatal immune markers and ADHD, genetic prediction methods, and lifestyle factors in functional somatic disorders. Earlier landmark publications (2020) established foundational work in autoimmune psychosis and the mental health consequences of the pandemic.

His scientific recognition includes:

• Sapere Aude Research Leader award from the Independent Research Fond Denmark

Dr. Benros has secured substantial research funding for his work on immuno-psychiatry and precision psychiatry, including leadership of the Precision Psychiatry Initiative which utilizes systems biology and machine learning methods to develop more precise diagnostics and identify new treatment targets. His research leverages Denmark's unique nationwide registers and biobanks to investigate immune exposures in relation to mental disorders.

He directs a significant research group focused on Biological and Precision Psychiatry at Mental Health Centre Copenhagen, where they combine register data with immunogenetic investigations and novel research on cerebrospinal fluid and blood from clinical studies. His team employs omics and systems biology approaches to unravel the complex relationship between the immune system and mental health.