Erin Calipari, director of the Vanderbilt Center for Addiction Research and associate professor of pharmacology and molecular physiology and biophysics, has been recognized with the Society for Neuroscience’s 2024 Jacob P. Waletzky award.
The award recognizes early-career scientists whose independent research has led to significant conceptual and empirical contributions to the understanding of drug addiction and who plan to continue to make significant contributions to addiction research and treatment. Through this award, Calipari is being recognized for transforming scientists’ understanding of how behavioral circuits are dysregulated by long-term drug use. She will receive $30,000 and present at SfN’s annual meeting in Chicago in early October.
“Her innovative, multidisciplinary approach has made her a leader in the field of addiction neurobiology who has redefined how motivational systems, such as the dopamine system, mediate learning, memory, and adaptive behavior at the systems and molecular level,” according to a SfN release. “Consistent with clinical data, her research has demonstrated that repeated drug exposure leads to deficiencies in dopamine release that persist with abstinence. Beyond these research accomplishments, Calipari is shaping the future of the field through her abiding commitment to train and support the next generation of addiction scientists, including many that are underrepresented in science. Her dedication to mentoring and her passion for raising public awareness to destigmatize addiction coupled with her exceptional research accomplishments enables Calipari to have far reaching influence on the field of substance use disorders.”
The Calipari lab is characterizing the parts of the brain responsible for motivating and learning, which are also connected to addiction. Calipari’s recent series of publications have shown that dopamine levels increase in response to stressful stimuli, not just pleasurable ones. She continues this research by looking at the effect of addictive drugs, potentially rewriting facts about the “feel-good” hormone.
“I am very honored to receive the 2024 Jacob P. Waletzky Award,” Calipari said. “Understanding the mechanisms of addiction is a critical factor to addressing this crisis. These efforts can only be accomplished with a team science approach. My lab is working hard, together, to ensure we understand as much as we can about the brain and addiction.”
The Society for Neuroscience is an organization of nearly 35,000 basic scientists and clinicians who study the brain and the nervous system.