Dr. Vernino is a Professor of Neurology & Neurotherapeutics at UT Southwestern Medical Center, where he serves as vice chair and section head for neuromuscular and autonomic disorders. He holds the Dr. Bob and Jean Smith Foundation Distinguished Chair in Neuromuscular Disease Research and the Rex Griswald Distinguished Professorship for Multiple System Atrophy. He is the director of the autonomic disorders fellowship program and the MSA multidisciplinary clinic.

Dr. Vernino earned an MD and PhD in Neuroscience at Baylor College of Medicine. He completed neurology residency and fellowship training in neuroimmunology and EMG at Mayo Clinic in Rochester, MN. He is Board Certified in Neurology, Neuromuscular Medicine, and Autonomic Disorders. He currently serves on the board of directors of the American Autonomic Society and the medical advisory boards of the MSA Coalition, and Dysautonomia International. He is a Fellow of the American Academy of Neurology, and the American Neurological Association. Dr. Vernino has been recognized as an outstanding clinician, researcher and teacher with numerous awards. He was the 1998 recipient of the AAN Founders Award, 2013 recipient of the AAN program director award, and 2016 Regents Outstanding Teacher Award from the University of Texas system.

Dr. Vernino has published over 150 peer-reviewed articles as well as dozens of book chapters. His main research interest has been in treatment of autonomic disorders and also in helping to establish the field of autoimmune neurology. Most notably, he identified the presence of antibodies to ganglionic acetylcholine receptors as the cause of a rare disorder of the autonomic nervous system, autoimmune autonomic neuropathy, as well as characterizing several neurological antibodies related to paraneoplastic disorders.