In the News
03/2025 The 2025 Asan Award in Basic Medicine, to Karl Deisseroth, for "the discovery of light-gated ion channel mechanisms and the development of optogenetics"
Asan Medical Center | Stanford Medicine press release
11/2023 Karl Deisseroth introduces the Human Neural Circuitry program (HNC)
Karl Deisseroth is the Founder and Director of the HNC program. HNC is a multidisciplinary in-patient research program and laboratory aiming to better understand neuropsychiatric disorders and investigate the deepest mysteries of brain function and dysfunction. With its first-in-the-world technology network and real-time data-collection capabilities, workflows, and dedicated research space, Dr. Deisseroth’s HNC program will allow for the highest level of research science to be conducted with patients at Stanford Healthcare, the Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital, and beyond.
Stanford Medicine News Center | Stanford Medicine Magazine | HNC Film on Youtube
01/2023 The 2023 Japan Prize, to Karl Deisseroth, for "the development of methods that use genetically addressable light-sensitive membrane proteins to unravel neural circuit function"
Japan Prize | NIH BRAIN Initiative press release
09/2022 The 2022 Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize, to Karl Deisseroth, Hegemann, Miesenböck, for "research that laid the foundation for the field of optogenetics"
The Louisa Gross Horwitz Prize | Stanford Medicine press release | Wu Tsai Neuroscience Institute press release
9/2021 The 2021 Lasker Basic Medical Research Award, to Karl Deisseroth, Hegemann, and Oesterhelt, for "the discovery of light-sensitive microbial proteins that can activate or deactivate individual brain cells-leading to the development of optogenetics and revolutionizing neuroscience"
Lasker Foundation | Stanford Medicine press release | Forbes Magazine | Lasker Foundation Public Lecture
6/2020 Heineken Prize in Medicine from the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences
Stanford Medicine press release | Official press release
2/2019 Elected member, National Academy of Engineering
10/2018 2018 Kyoto Prize, to Karl Deisseroth, "for the discovery of optogenetics and the development of causal systems neuroscience"
Stanford Medicine press release | Photonics press release | Kyoto Prize Lecture
Hudson and Xander welcomed onstage at the ceremony as prior Kyoto Prize laureates Tasuku Honjo and Shinya Yamanaka look on over Karl's left shoulder.
9/2018 2018 Leibinger Prize, to Karl Deisseroth, for the "development and implementation of optogenetics"
3/2018 2018 Eisenberg Prize, University of Michigan, to Karl Deisseroth, for "the field of optogenetics"
2/2018 2018 Gairdner Award "for the discovery of light-gated ion channel mechanisms, and for the discovery of optogenetics - a technology that has revolutionized neuroscience"
7/2017 2017 NOMIS Foundation Distinguished Scientist Award to Karl Deisseroth
6/2017 2017 Harvey Prize Ceremony: optogenetics and gravitational waves
2017 Harvey Prize Lectures
2017 Harvey Prize Invitation
5/2017 Else Kröner Fresenius Prize awarded, to Karl Deisseroth, "for his discoveries of optogenetics and of hydrogel-tissue chemistry, and for developing circuit-level insight into depression"
EMBO Fresenius Prize interview | Fresenius Prize Commentary | HHMI | Stanford | Scope | The Scientist | NIMH | Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung
5/2017 Distinguished Redelsheimer Prize awarded
3/2017 AIMBE induction ceremony, National Academies Building, Washington DC
1/2017 2017 Harvey Prize Awarded for optogenetics: Deisseroth and Hegemann
10/2016 iBiology short talk: optogenetics discovery
10/2016 PNAS Q+A with Karl Deisseroth
8/2016 2016 Massry Prize named | The three 2016 Massry Prize Laureates | Massry Prize citations | Stanford blog | Stanford medicine | Stanford anniversary news | Stanford engineering
5/2016 Different brain cells process positive and negative experiences
11/2015 Bioengineering at Stanford becomes an official undergraduate major
11/2015 2016 Breakthrough Prize awarded to Karl Deisseroth | Stanford Medicine | Stanford press release | HHMI
05/2015 Dickson Prize in Medicine awarded
04/2015 New Prize for Optogenetics Awarded to Karl Deisseroth | Associated Press | Times-Union | Stanford blog
03/2015 Next generation of scientists at AAAS
2/2015 2015 Lurie Prize awarded, for optogenetics and CLARITY
11/2014 News and views: ideas on depression research
11/2014 Optogenetics applications and recent developments
11/2014 CLARITY applications and advances
10/2014 Keio Prize awarded to Karl Deisseroth | Stanford press release | Keio press release
6/2014 2014 Marshall Nirenberg Lecture, NIH [video]
4/2014 Social behavior circuit
4/2014 Next-generation CLARITY
4/2014 SwiChR and iC1C2: HHMI
4/2014 SwiChR and iC1C2: NIMH
4/2014 New York Times profile
4/2014 MIT Technology Review: Brain Mapping
1/2014 Dickson Prize in Science awarded
12/2013 New tools unveiled at Society For Neuroscience conference
8/2013 BRAIN initiative and neuroethics
6/2013 Nature Profile
6/2013 Science Profile
4/2013 Nature video and Stanford video on CLARITY
4/2013 NYTimes on CLARITY
4/2013 NIH Director Francis Collins, NIMH Director Tom Insel, NIH
4/2013 Associated Press, Reuters, and NBC News Science on CLARITY
4/2013 Simons Foundation and HHMI on CLARITY
4/2013 Scientific American blog, SCOPE blog on CLARITY
3/2013 CNC center and the Brain proposal
3/2013 Pasarow Prize, to Karl Deisseroth, for neuropsychiatry research
3/2013 Grete Lundbeck European Brain Research Prize, to Karl Deisseroth, for the development of optogenetics
1/2013 Lounsbery Prize from the National Academy of Sciences, to Karl Deisseroth, for optogenetics
12/2012 BBR & Stanford feature depression circuitry study
11/2012 Depression study featured by Brain & Behavior Research Foundation and Stanford News
12/2011 2011 HHMI Annual Report names anxiety study one of 'ten big stories' of 2011
2011 Profile of Karl Deisseroth in Stanford Medicine
08/2011 Rob Ring, president of translational research for Autism Speaks, writes about research from the lab
12/2010 2010 Method of the Year: Optogenetics. Method of the Year Primer
12/2010 2010 Science: insight of the decade
07/2010 Article on optogenetics published in Forbes
04/2010 Optogenetics article from Brain & Behavior Research Foundation
04/2010 The International HFSP Nakasone Prize, to Karl Deisseroth, for optogenetics (Citation)
01/2010 Society for Neuroscience features optogenetics in Inside Science Forum, with Karl Deisseroth and Feng Zhang
01/2010 Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) features KD and optogenetics.
10/2009 Karl Deisseroth is awarded the Young Investigator Award from the Society for Neuroscience
10/2009 Karl Deisseroth gives SFN special lecture on optogenetics
10/2009 Ilka is awarded the Human Frontier Science Program Fellowship
10/2009 Tom is awarded the Walter V. and Idun Berry Fellowship
09/2009 KQED special features KD and Optogenetics in Illuminating Depression ( Producer's notes)
09/2009 Karl Deisseroth's Scientist Abstract is added to the HHMI website
03/2009 Mice Get Hooked on Light. MIT Technology Review
12/2008 Viviana receives the Stanford Interdisciplinary Graduate Fellowship
12/2008 Murtaza receives the Stanford Graduate Fellowship
12/2008 Ramin receives the Stanford Dean's Fellowship Award
12/2008 Cell imaging: Light activated Nature Technology Feature
11/2008 Ilana receives the Helen Hay Whitney Fellowship
10/2008 Ilka receives a fellowship from the German Academic Research Exchange DAAD
08/2008 Inbal receives the Rothschild and Machiah Fellowships
06/2008 Lisa receives a Stanford Bio-X Graduate Student Fellowship
04/2008 Ofer receives fellowships from EMBO and the Human Frontiers in Science Program
03/2008 Kim receives a 2008 NARSAD Young Investigator Award
03/2008 Karl Deisseroth receives the Larry C. Katz Memorial Prize Lecture at Duke University
03/2008 Feng receives the Larry C. Katz Memorial Lecture award at the 2008 Neural Circuits Meeting at the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory
06/2007 The Natronomonas pharaonis halorhodopsin manuscript is one of Nature's favorite papers in 2007
08/2007 "The Beam of Light That Flips a Switch That Turns on the Brain" in Science Times
06/2007 Feng receives the Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (NRSA)
03/2007 Optogenetics is selected as one of the top 10 emerging technologies (TR10) by MIT's Technology Review [ Details ]
02/2007 Raag receives the Ruth L. Kirschstein National Research Service Award (NRSA)
12/2006 Optogenetics News Focus in the December 2006 issue of Science
09/2006 Liping receives the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine postdoctoral fellowship
07/2006 Karl Deisseroth receives the 2006 Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers.
09/2005 Karl Deisseroth receives the NIH pioneer award
08/2005 Karl Deisseroth is one of four recipients awarded a Technological Innovations in Neuroscience Award for 2005-2007 by the McKnight Endowment Fund for Neuroscience
07/2005 Karl Deisseroth receives award from the H. L. Snyder Medical Foundation to help develop high-speed optical control methods
05/2005 Karl Deisseroth receives a Coulter Early Career Translational Research Award