Rhonda R. Voskuhl

Rhonda R. Voskuhl, MD is a Professor of Neurology at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) where she holds the Jack H. Skirball Chair and serves as Director of the UCLA Multiple Sclerosis Program. She is also the faculty neurologist for the UCLA Comprehensive Menopause Care Program. Dr. Voskuhl's work bridges clinical practice and translational research with a focus on sex differences in neurodegenerative diseases.

Dr. Voskuhl received her medical degree from Vanderbilt University School of Medicine in 1986, completed her neurology residency at Parkland Health and Hospital System in 1990, and completed a neuroimmunology fellowship at the National Institutes of Health in 1993. She is board certified in Neurology by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology.

Dr. Voskuhl's research focuses on understanding how sex hormones and sex chromosomes cause differences in the onset and severity of neurodegenerative diseases. Her laboratory has pioneered work showing how estrogen protects the brain from cognitive decline and regional brain atrophy. She leverages sex differences to discover treatments optimized for women and men, with particular focus on multiple sclerosis and menopause-related cognitive issues. Her approach follows a "Bedside to Bench to Bedside" philosophy where clinical observations inform laboratory investigations which then lead to clinical trials.

Analysis of Dr. Voskuhl's recent publications reveals a consistent focus on sex differences in neurodegenerative conditions, particularly multiple sclerosis. Her work spans basic science investigations of estrogen receptor beta in astrocytes, clinical studies of estriol treatment effects, and reviews examining the broader implications of sex differences in disease susceptibility and progression. A key theme is the neuroprotective role of estrogen and its potential therapeutic applications.

• John Dystel Prize in MS, 2024
• Rachel Horne Prize for Women's Research in MS, 2023
• NIH R35 Research Program Award, 2023-2031
• Kenneth P. Johnson Award, 2019
• Berlin Institute of Health Excellence Award, 2018
• Jack H. Skirball Chair for Multiple Sclerosis Research, UCLA, 2006
• Super Doctors® Southern California, 2024, 2025

Dr. Voskuhl has served as Principal Investigator for four clinical trials testing new treatments based on her laboratory's work at UCLA, generating Phase 2 trial data supporting neuroprotection using clinical outcomes and biomarkers of neurodegeneration. She was President of the Organization for the Study of Sex Differences (OSSD), an international organization focused on discovering optimally tailored treatments for women and men. Her research at UCLA has had continuous funding for over 25 years from the NIH and other nonprofit organizations, including a significant $7.3 million NIH Research Program Award (R35) in 2023.

Dr. Voskuhl leads a research laboratory at UCLA that focuses on determining how sex hormones and sex chromosomes cause sex differences in the onset and severity of neurodegenerative diseases. Her team has been instrumental in developing innovative hormone approaches to treat cognitive issues of menopause, resulting in over 15 U.S. and European patents licensed by CleopatraRX. She works collaboratively with UCLA gynecologists and other experts in bone, breast, cardiovascular, and genitourinary health as part of the UCLA Comprehensive Menopause Care Program.