Karl Deisseroth, M.D., Ph.D.

 

Photo credit: Associated Press

We are thrilled to congratulate Karl Deisseroth, M.D., Ph.D., on receiving the 2026 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine!

Dr. Deisseroth reflected on his groundbreaking research with fellow Nobel laureates Peter Hegemann and Georg Nagel, and the potential of their discoveries to transform our understanding and treatment of neurological and psychiatric conditions:

“For me, I’m a physician-scientist. I am a psychiatrist. I care about patients and my patients who have autism, who have depression,” he said. “I care about the hope that this brings. But I’m also a basic scientist, and I care about understanding this amazing organ, the brain, and how it works and how it integrates and computes and delivers all the things that make us human.”
— Source: Associated Press

The Esther A. & Joseph Klingenstein Fund is proud to have supported Dr. Deisseroth’s early work. Dr. Deisseroth applied for a Klingenstein Fellowship Award in Neuroscience soon after starting his lab at Stanford in 2004. His achievement is a reminder of the importance of supporting talented early career scientists and physician-scientists and giving them opportunity to pursue bold ideas that can reshape our understanding of the brain.

We join the science community in celebrating Dr. Deisseroth’s extraordinary achievement and the promise his work holds for patients and for the future of neuroscience.