2026 Karl Deisseroth: Neuroscience Researcher – H-Index, Publications & Awards

Discipline name	D-Index	World Ranking	Current World Ranking	National Ranking	Current National Ranking	Publications	Citations
Best Scientists	184	525	486	339	308	629	143028
Neuroscience	192	38	32	25	19	569	150265

Research.com Recognitions

2026 - Research.com Neuroscience in United States Leader Award
2025 - Research.com Best Scientists Award
2025 - Research.com Neuroscience in United States Leader Award
2021 - Albert Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research, Lasker Foundation
2019 - Warren Alpert Foundation Prize For the development of optogenetics as a way to control the activity of specific circuits in the nervous system, to determine their function and ultimately to control them to treat neurological and psychiatric disorders.
2019 - Member of the National Academy of Engineering For molecular and optical tools for discovery and control of neuronal signals behind animal behavior in health and disease.
2018 - Fellow, National Academy of Inventors
2018 - Canada Gairdner International Award
2017 - Fellow of the Indian National Academy of Engineering (INAE)
2016 - Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences for the development and implementation of optogenetics – the programming of neurons to express light-activated ion channels and pumps, so that their electrical activity can be controlled by light.
2015 - BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Award
2015 - Albany Medical Center Prize in Medicine and Biomedical Research
2015 - Lurie Prize in Biomedical Sciences, Foundation for the National Institutes of Health
2014 - Keio Medical Science Prize, Keio University, Tokyo, Japan
2014 - German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina - Deutsche Akademie der Naturforscher Leopoldina – Nationale Akademie der Wissenschaften Neurosciences
2013 - Richard Lounsbery Award, National Academy of Sciences and the French Academy of Sciences for pioneering the technology called optogenetics in which insertion of a single bacterial protein into a neuron allows exquisite control of the neuron with light.
2013 - Robert J. and Claire Pasarow Foundation Medical Research Award
2013 - The Brain Prize, Lundbeck Foundation For their invention and refinement of optogenetics. This revolutionary technique allows genetically specified populations of neurons to be turned on or off with light, offering not only the ability to elucidate the characteristics of normal and abnormal neural circuitry but also new approaches to treatment of brain disorders
2012 - Member of the National Academy of Sciences
2011 - Perl-UNC Prize, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Development and Application of Optogenetics for Studying Neural Circuit Functions.
2011 - W. Alden Spencer Award, College of Physicians and Surgeons
2010 - Member of the National Academy of Medicine (NAM)
2009 - Golden Brain Award, Minerva Foundation
2005 - National Institutes of Health Director's Pioneer Award

Overview

Karl Deisseroth is affiliated with Stanford University in the United States. Their research spans the fields of Neuroscience and Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology, with a particular focus on Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience, Cognitive Neuroscience, Molecular Biology, Biophysics, and Biomedical Engineering.

The main research topics covered in their work include Photoreceptor and optogenetics research, Neural dynamics and brain function, Neuroscience and Neural Engineering, Neuroscience and Neuropharmacology Research, Receptor Mechanisms and Signaling, Memory and Neural Mechanisms, and Neurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior.

Several recent papers highlight Karl Deisseroth's contributions across multiple high-profile journals:

Topological supramolecular network enabled high-conductivity, stretchable organic bioelectronics, 2022, Science
Maturation and circuit integration of transplanted human cortical organoids, 2022, Nature
Deep posteromedial cortical rhythm in dissociation, 2020, Nature
Cardiogenic control of affective behavioural state, 2023, Nature
Cerebellar nuclei evolved by repeatedly duplicating a conserved cell-type set, 2020, Science

Frequent collaborators include Charu Ramakrishnan, Lief E. Fenno, Yoon Seok Kim, and Zhenan Bao.

Karl Deisseroth has published extensively in venues such as bioRxiv (Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory), Cell, Neuron, UNC Libraries, and Science.

In addition to journal publications, Karl Deisseroth has authored books, including "Les fils tressés de nos sentiments," published by Dunod in 2022.

Their work has been recognized through numerous awards and honors, including:

Albert Lasker Award for Basic Medical Research, 2021
Member of the National Academy of Engineering, 2019, for molecular and optical tools for discovery and control of neuronal signals behind animal behavior in health and disease
Warren Alpert Foundation Prize, 2019, for development of optogenetics as a tool to control nervous system circuits
Canada Gairdner International Award, 2018
Fellow, National Academy of Inventors, 2018
Fellow of the Indian National Academy of Engineering, 2017
Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences, 2016, for development and implementation of optogenetics
BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Award, 2015
Lurie Prize in Biomedical Sciences, 2015
Albany Medical Center Prize in Medicine and Biomedical Research, 2015
Keio Medical Science Prize, 2014
German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina, 2014, Neurosciences
Richard Lounsbery Award, 2013, for pioneering optogenetics technology
The Brain Prize, Lundbeck Foundation, 2013, for invention and refinement of optogenetics
Robert J. and Claire Pasarow Foundation Medical Research Award, 2013
Member of the National Academy of Sciences, 2012
Perl-UNC Prize, 2011, for development and application of optogenetics to study neural circuits
W. Alden Spencer Award, 2011
Member of the National Academy of Medicine, 2010
Golden Brain Award, Minerva Foundation, 2009
National Institutes of Health Director's Pioneer Award, 2005

Best Publications

Millisecond-timescale, genetically targeted optical control of neural activity.

Edward S Boyden;Feng Zhang;Ernst Bamberg;Georg Nagel

5909
Citations
Driving fast-spiking cells induces gamma rhythm and controls sensory responses

Jessica A. Cardin;Marie Carlén;Marie Carlén;Konstantinos Meletis;Konstantinos Meletis;Ulf Knoblich

3039
Citations
Parvalbumin neurons and gamma rhythms enhance cortical circuit performance

Vikaas S. Sohal;Feng Zhang;Ofer Yizhar;Karl Deisseroth

3030
Citations
Neocortical excitation/inhibition balance in information processing and social dysfunction

Ofer Yizhar;Ofer Yizhar;Lief E. Fenno;Matthias Prigge;Franziska Schneider

2763
Citations
Optogenetics in neural systems.

Ofer Yizhar;Lief E. Fenno;Thomas J. Davidson;Murtaza Mogri

2234
Citations
The Development and Application of Optogenetics

Lief Fenno;Ofer Yizhar;Karl Deisseroth

2169
Citations
Regulation of parkinsonian motor behaviours by optogenetic control of basal ganglia circuitry

Alexxai V Kravitz;Benjamin S Freeze;Philip R L Parker;Kenneth Kay

2121
Citations
Multimodal fast optical interrogation of neural circuitry

Feng Zhang;Li-Ping Wang;Martin Brauner;Jana F. Liewald

2113
Citations
Optogenetic stimulation of a hippocampal engram activates fear memory recall

Xu Liu;Steve Ramirez;Petti T. Pang;Corey B. Puryear

1896
Citations
Optical Deconstruction of Parkinsonian Neural Circuitry

Viviana Gradinaru;Murtaza Mogri;Kimberly R. Thompson;Jaimie M. Henderson

1790
Citations
Three-dimensional intact-tissue sequencing of single-cell transcriptional states.

Xiao Wang;William E. Allen;Matthew A. Wright;Emily L. Sylwestrak

1567
Citations
Optogenetics: 10 years of microbial opsins in neuroscience

Karl Deisseroth

1566
Citations
Neural substrates of awakening probed with optogenetic control of hypocretin neurons

Antoine Roger Adamantidis;Feng Zhang;Alexander M Aravanis;Karl Deisseroth

1544
Citations
Phasic Firing in Dopaminergic Neurons Is Sufficient for Behavioral Conditioning

Hsing-Chen Tsai;Feng Zhang;Antoine Roger Adamantidis;Garret D Stuber

1518
Citations
Natural Neural Projection Dynamics Underlying Social Behavior

Lisa A. Gunaydin;Logan Grosenick;Joel C. Finkelstein;Isaac V. Kauvar

1491
Citations
Amygdala circuitry mediating reversible and bidirectional control of anxiety

Kay M. Tye;Rohit Prakash;Sung-Yon Kim;Lief E. Fenno

1468
Citations
Input-specific control of reward and aversion in the ventral tegmental area

Stephan Lammel;Byung Kook Lim;Chen Ran;Kee Wui Huang

1444
Citations
CREB Phosphorylation and Dephosphorylation: A Ca2+- and Stimulus Duration–Dependent Switch for Hippocampal Gene Expression

Haruhiko Bito;Karl Deisseroth;Richard W Tsien

1429
Citations
Rapid regulation of depression-related behaviours by control of midbrain dopamine neurons

Dipesh Chaudhury;Jessica J. Walsh;Allyson K. Friedman;Barbara Juarez

1284
Citations
Molecular and Cellular Approaches for Diversifying and Extending Optogenetics

Viviana Gradinaru;Feng Zhang;Charu Ramakrishnan;Joanna Mattis

1259
Citations
Neocortical excitation/inhibition balance in information processing and social

Lief E. Fenno;Matthias Prigge;Franziska Schneider;Thomas J. Davidson

7
Citations