Welcome To CSB

The Department of Cell & Systems Biology (CSB) advances research and teaching in the most dynamic and vital areas of biological research

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Meet our Faculty

Explore who’s behind our latest outstanding publications.

Maria Papaconstantinou

Associate Professor, Teaching Stream and Director

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Recent Publications

Effector-triggered immunity in oilseed crops is expanded despite the restricted specificity of the receptor ZAR1

Breit-McNally C, Lai Y, Xiao R, Mazzurco O, Lyons C, Singh RA, Martel A, Seto D, Parkin IA, Desveaux D, Guttman DS
2026, Current Biology, 10.1016/j.cub.2026.09.076

The histone variant H2A.Z regulates sex differences in Alzheimer’s disease pathophysiology

Hategan LA, Luo JQ, Creighton SD, Pirri F, McLean TA, Hua S, Dahi TA, Jin Z, Winston SM, Reeves IL, Johnston K, Fahnestock M, Brimble MA, Walters BJ, Murphy PJ, Zovkic IB
2026, Neuron, 10.1016/j.neuron.2026.09.019

GABA neurons in the sublaterodorsal tegmental nucleus suppress wakefulness in healthy and narcoleptic mice

Csicsvari J, Lee H, Fraigne JJ, Peever JH
2026, PLOS Biology, 10.1371/journal.pbio.3003303

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Latest News

October 6, 2026

Dr. Maria Papaconstantinou looks to the future as Director of Human Biology

Dr. Maria Papaconstantinou has been selected as Director of the University of Toronto’s Human Biology Program, taking on leadership of a program that…

September 21, 2026

Professor Haley Zubyk Recognized as an Emerging Educational Leader

Professor Haley Zubyk has earned the Emerging Educational Leader Award from fellow Canadian biology educators in the Open Consortium of Undergraduate…

September 11, 2026

Summer at the lab bench yields stunning breakthroughs and earns prizes

We were excited to see this year's crop of summer students present the fruits of their research at the 2026 Summer undergraduate poster session.…

September 8, 2026

Nyman Scholarship earned by paying it forward in research and student life

Gretl Baghdadi has earned the 2026 Dr Leslie Paul Nyman Scholarship for her commitment to plant biology, her academic excellence and her support of…

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Jennifer Mitchell

Professor and Chair

Our Department of Cell and Systems Biology (CSB) celebrates its 20^th anniversary this year and I am proud to lead a team of researchers pushing the boundaries of cell biology and systems biology and to support teaching initiatives in North America’s largest Life Sciences undergraduate community.