Dr. Karas completed his Doctoral degree at Western University, London, Ontario, where he focused on deciphering the genetics of nitrogen-fixing root nodule symbiosis. Then, he refined his training at the J. Craig Venter Institute (JCVI), California, USA, as a Post-Doctoral Trainee/Staff Scientist, where he had the opportunity to engage with the JCVI team led by the Nobel Laureate, Dr. Hamilton Smith, to learn about technologies that were used to construct the first synthetic cell. He used these techniques to contribute to the minimal synthetic cell development, an organism driven by a minimal set of genes required for life. In 2017, he joined Western University as an Assistant Professor, where he continues to develop novel methods for large-scale genome engineering and genome transfer.