We are pleased to announce that Professor Ilia Karatsoreos has been elected Department Chair. A PBS faculty member since 2020, Ilia is a circadian rhythm expert in our Behavioral Neuroscience research program.
Dr. Karatsoreos is Tenured Professor and Chair of the Department Psychological and Brain Sciences at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, USA. His research team focuses on the intersection of biological rhythms, stress, and immunology, and how these factors modulate resilience and vulnerability to environmental challenges. Work by his group is funded by the NIH, NSF, NASA and the Keck Foundation.
Born and raised in Toronto, Canada, Dr. Karatsoreos received his B.Sc. from the University of Toronto in the lab of Martin Ralph. He completed an NSERC funded Ph.D. in Rae Silver’s lab at Columbia University (New York, USA), studying effects of gonadal hormones on SCN structure-function and behavior. His CIHR funded postdoc in the laboratory of Bruce McEwen at The Rockefeller University (New York), explored links between stress and circadian rhythms. He started his research group at Washington State University (USA) in 2012 and was recruited to the University of Massachusetts in 2020. Dr. Karatsoreos has served the Society for Research on Biological Rhythms (SRBR) as Chair of Mentorship and Professional Development (2016-2022) and a Member-at-Large on the SRBR Executive Board (2022-2024) and is currently the elected Secretary of the Canadian Society for Chronobiology.
Ilia is excited to move into this role and help PBS train the next generation of scientists and scholars by expanding the research and teaching capacities of PBS. A strong believer in equitable access to experiential learning opportunities, from working in labs to getting “real world” experience through internships, he is hoping to help broaden participation and improve the inclusiveness of these programs in the department.
When not in the lab or his office working with his research team, Ilia is an avid traveler, visiting many friends and colleagues around the world, knowing that around each corner there’s an amazing new experience to be had and new connections to be made.