William Carlezon, Ph.D., is chief of McLean’s Division of Basic Neuroscience and a professor of psychiatry at Harvard Medical School. Dr. Carlezon is known for his work on the neurobiology of depression and addiction. His lab has been at the forefront of studying the role of dynorphin, the endogenous opioid, and its brain receptor (kappa-opioid receptors) in motivation and emotion. He is currently editor-in-chief of Neuropsychopharmacology.

Dr. Carlezon has received several awards for his research, including the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE) from George W. Bush, the Jacob P. Waletzky Award for Innovative Research in Drug Addiction and Alcoholism from the Society for Neuroscience (SfN), and the Daniel H. Efron Award from the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ACNP).