Denise Belsham (She/Her)

Dr Denise Belsham, Professor of Physiology and Medicine at the University of Toronto, is a Tier 1 Canada Research Chair with over 30 years of neuroendocrine research accolades. She is the first woman President of the International Neuroendocrine Federation and founding President of the Pan American Neuroendocrine Society. Awarded the President’s Teaching Award, she is a champion for women in STEM and uses innovative methods to enhance learning. To distribute her unique “immortalized neurons in a dish” worldwide, she founded her first company CELLutions Biosystems in 2001. She recently founded ZAPetite after discovering a nature-identical plant hormone that controls appetite and enables weight management. She has just been named one of the Top 100 Most Powerful Women in Canada by the Women’s Executive Network in 2025.

Faculty Appointments

Professor of Physiology (primary appointment) and Medicine (cross appointment)
Member of Banting and Best Diabetes Centre and Collaborative Program in Neuroscience