Dr. Bonkowsky received his undergraduate degree from Harvard University, followed by a Fulbright Fellowship, and obtained his MD and PhD degrees from the University of California at San Diego. Dr. Bonkowsky then completed Pediatrics and Child Neurology training at the University of Utah and Boston Children’s Hospital, and is board certified in Pediatrics and Neurology/Child Neurology.  Currently he is an assistant professor of Pediatric Neurology at the University of Utah School of Medicine.

Dr. Bonkowsky’s research focuses on using basic research models to investigate neurodegenerative and neurodevelopmental diseases.  He has established a zebrafish model for characterizing zebrafish basal ganglia development, and investigated the mechanisms regulating gene expression in dopaminergic neurons.  Dr. Bonkowsky’s lab is currently focused on understanding the pathophysiology of glucocerebrosidase mutations in Parkinson’s disease with the help of the Michael J. Fox Foundation.