Dr Rashmi Kothary is the Deputy Scientific Director and Senior Scientist at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute (OHRI). He received a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from the University of British Columbia and pursued postdoctoral research in the laboratories of Dr. Janet Rossant at the Mount Sinai Hospital Research Institute in Toronto and Dr. Azim Surani in Cambridge, U.K. It was during these formative years that Dr. Kothary developed his interests in pre-clinical models to study disease pathology. In 1990, he returned to Canada to begin his independent research career at the Institut du cancer de Montréal. In 1998, Dr. Kothary joined the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute. He has held the University Health Research Chair in Neuromuscular Disorders and is a Professor at the University of Ottawa. His current research focuses on investigating extrinsic and intrinsic factors important for oligodendrocyte mediated myelination and remyelination of the CNS (in the context of Multiple Sclerosis), and understanding Spinal Muscular Atrophy pathogenesis and identifying novel therapeutics for this devastating children’s disease. He currently sits on the SMA Beyond advisory board, has served on the scientific advisory board for CIHR IMHA, MDA and Cure SMA, and is a reviewer for the CIHR, NIH and Shriners Hospitals for Children.

Dr. Kothary represents basic science as a member of the NMD4C Steering Committee.