Dear Colleagues,

We are pleased to announce that the winner of the Cells 2023 Young Investigator Award is Dr. Konstantinos Palikaras.

Dr. Konstantinos Palikaras is an Associate Professor (under assessment) of the School of Medicine at the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Athens, Greece. His research focuses on mitochondrial homeostasis, neurodegeneration, and aging. Dr. Palikaras received his PhD in 2015 and has an outstanding publication record, comprising 48 publications. During his post-doctoral years, in collaboration with esteemed researchers such as Prof. V. Bohr and Prof. L. Scorrano, Dr. Palikaras continued to make impactful discoveries. His findings on the role of mitophagy in Alzheimer's disease and autosomal dominant optic atrophy are particularly noteworthy and have the potential to lead to novel therapeutic interventions. In addition to his research accomplishments, Dr. Palikaras is the recipient of several prestigious scientific awards, including the "Fotis Kafatos" Award, the DeLill Nasser Award for Professional Development in Genetics, the Manasaki Doctoral Fellowship, and post-doctoral fellowships from the Bodossaki Foundation and the AXA Research Fund, further highlighting their research prowess. He is clearly a rising star in the field of experimental physiology. This is an outstanding achievement in today’s competitive environment. Please join us in congratulating Dr. Konstantinos Palikaras for his outstanding achievements.

As the awardee, Dr. Konstantinos Palikaras will receive an honorarium of CHF 2000, an offer to publish a paper free of charge before the end of 2024 in Cells after peer-review, and an electronic certificate.

We would like to thank all the nominators from various fields of study for their participation and all the Award Committee Members for their evaluation of the many excellent nominations.

Cells 2023 Young Investigator Evaluation Committee