Dr. Mark W. Albers M.D

Dr. Mark W. Albers, M.D., Ph.D., is a neurologist with specialized expertise in memory disorders and disorders of olfaction. He holds a Ph.D. in organic chemistry from Harvard University, where he conducted research in the laboratory of Stuart Schreiber, and earned his medical degree through the Harvard–MIT Health Sciences and Technology (HST) program.

Dr. Albers completed two years of internal medicine residency at Massachusetts General Hospital, followed by advanced neurology training at Massachusetts General Hospital and Brigham and Women’s Hospital. During this period, he served as one of the inaugural chief residents of the Partners Neurology Residency Program. He later completed postdoctoral fellowship training in the laboratory of Richard Axel while practicing clinical neurology at the Neurological Institute of Columbia University.

Clinical Practice

At Massachusetts General Hospital, Dr. Albers provides care through the Memory Disorders Clinic and serves as an attending physician on the inpatient neurology service. His clinical work focuses on the evaluation and management of patients with cognitive decline, neurodegenerative conditions, and sensory disorders, with particular emphasis on early disease detection and diagnostic precision.

Research & Academic Focus

Dr. Albers’ clinical research centers on the development of sensitive measures of olfactory function as early biomarkers for neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer’s disease, traumatic brain injury (TBI), and post-infectious neurological syndromes such as COVID-related neurologic impairment.

His laboratory research is dedicated to understanding the biological mechanisms underlying neurodegeneration, identifying novel therapeutic targets, and developing strategies to prevent neuronal injury and disease progression. He is the principal investigator of the NADALS trial, the first basket-style clinical trial in neurodegenerative disease, which evaluates the FDA-approved medication baricitinib in patients with Alzheimer’s disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

Leadership & Appointments

Dr. Albers holds multiple academic and clinical appointments, including Associate Neurologist in the Department of Neurology at Massachusetts General Hospital and Associate Professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School. He is also Associate Director of the Massachusetts Center for Alzheimer’s Therapeutic Science.

In addition, he has served on the Translational Neuroscience Committee of the American Academy of Neurology and is a faculty member of the Harvard Program in Therapeutic Science, the Laboratory of Systems Pharmacology, the Harvard–MIT Center for Regulatory Science, and the McCance Center for Brain Health.