Yasmin Hurd, PhD, Director, Addiction Institute of Mount Sinai
Dr. Hurd holds the Ward-Coleman Chair in Translational Research and Professor of Psychiatry, Neuroscience, and Pharmacological Sciences at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. Her research topics include Addiction, Anatomy, Basal Ganglia, Behavior, Brain, Developmental Biology, Epigenetics, Gene Expression, Gene Regulation, Genetics, Neurobiology, Neuropeptides, Neuroscience, Neurotransmitters, and Opioid/Cannabinoid Receptors.
Dr. Hurd’s multidisciplinary research investigates the neurobiology underlying addiction disorders and related psychiatric illnesses. Her team applies a translational approach to examine molecular and neurochemical events in the human brain and comparable animal models in order to ascertain neurobiological correlates of behavior. A major focus of her research is directed at risk factors of addiction disorders, including genetics as well as developmental exposure to drugs such as cannabis.
Yasmin Hurd’s research into the neurobiology of addictive disorders and the role genetics play in their development and potential treatment relates squarely to both the prevalence of substance abuse and addiction and to potential ways to address it.
Her current research focuses on the effects of cannabis and heroin on the brain. Her preclinical research is complemented by clinical laboratory investigations evaluating the therapeutic potential of medications to treat psychiatric disorders. One area of concentration has been whether cannabis is a gateway drug to opioid abuse later in life. Her research showed that whereas one of the identified cannabinoids in cannabis plants, tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), increased heroin sensitivity, another, cannabidiol (CBD), reduced heroin seeking and thus is being investigated as a potentially significant option for treating patients with opioid abuse disorder.
“While our research involves basic, molecular, and behavioral neuroscience, it also focuses on translational work. As such, we strive to identify biological targets in the human brain that can be replicated in animal models and then moved to human clinical trials. Ultimately, we want to find ways to help people overcome addiction,” she says.
“Despite relatively uniform rates of substance abuse and addiction among all groups, people from minority groups face high stigma related to substance abuse, and they are most likely to experience barriers to accessing substance abuse treatment,” she says.
Dr. Hurd also points out that people who have experienced early-life trauma are more likely to experience addiction, and this correlation has particular relevance to minority groups.
“My belief is that having a diverse research team—be it differences that are racial, gender-based, ethnic, or related to training or thought—is imperative. People with varied backgrounds and training are intellectually curious about different topics and are seeking different answers to important scientific questions. This leads to richer discussions and ultimately better science and outcomes,” says Dr. Hurd.
“Young people from underrepresented groups who are interested in science don’t see a lot of people like me, and if they don’t see themselves, they are not going to pursue science.”
She notes, however, that more needs to be done to improve the pipeline of minority scientists, starting in junior and senior high school, and that she works hard to recruit more minority scientists to Mount Sinai. She says that while she works to bring equity to underrepresented groups, it is not at the expense of talent. “We attract talented people, regardless of their gender or color of their skin,” she says.
Dr. Hurd herself is a strong role model for young people from underrepresented backgrounds who are interested in science. “I’m a scientist in a leadership role and a black woman,” she says. “Young people from underrepresented groups who are interested in science don’t see a lot of people like me, and if they don’t see themselves, they are not going to pursue science. I am proud to be a visible role model in that sense.”
Asked what advice she has for the next generation of science students, Dr. Hurd says, “I tell students they have to work on being strong and resilient. Failure is not the end. Everyone has some failure. It makes us stronger and we learn from it. And in research, failures shed light on the science and informs what we will do next to get the answers we need.”
In her leadership in the lab, Dr. Hurd adheres to a simple formula of honesty and visibility. “There are still challenges in academia in terms of implicit biases. I think visibility from leadership—doing the right thing, standing up for equality—is important. So is honesty; we have to call out what is wrong or unjust and discuss it openly. I think my team knows I will support them if they stand up for what is right. This kind of activism helps us evolve as a society, as long as it’s respectful to all.”
Photo Credit: Claudia Paul, January-February 2020