Katerina Semendeferi

Katerina Semendeferi is a Professor of Anthropology and Director of the Laboratory for Human Comparative Neuroanatomy at the University of California San Diego. She specializes in human brain evolution and neurodevelopmental disorders, with a focus on comparative studies between humans and great apes. Her work explores evolutionary reorganization of brain regions impacting social cognition and emotion regulation, particularly in conditions like Autism and Williams Syndrome.

Education: Completed graduate/postgraduate training in Biological Anthropology, Neurosciences, and Cognitive Neuroscience at the University of Iowa. Established collaborations with primate centers globally to advance non-invasive brain imaging techniques on ape specimens. Spearheaded initiatives to curate ape brain tissue repositories, fostering large-scale comparative studies.

Research Interests: Integrating structural MRI, postmortem histology, and stem cell-derived organoids to study human brain evolution. Key areas include amygdala and prefrontal cortex development, neuronal density alterations in neurodevelopmental disorders, and evolutionary mechanisms underlying human-specific cognitive traits. Recent work bridges induced pluripotent stem cell technologies with traditional neuroanatomical methods.

Awards & Recognition: Recipient of the Faculty Outstanding Mentor Award (Marshall College), James Arthur Lecture honor (American Museum of Natural History), and AAAS Fellowship. Active in interdisciplinary training, mentoring diverse students in anthropology and neuroscience programs.

Grants & Labs: Directs UCSD's Human Comparative Neuroanatomy Lab, collaborating with NIH-funded brain banks and the Kavli Institute for Brain and Mind. Leads CARTA (Center for Academic Research and Training in Anthropogeny) advisory efforts to integrate multiple disciplines in human origins research.