Yale Establishes Cannabis Research Center To Study Marijuana's Effect On Neurodevelopment & Mental Health

One of the world's leading centers for biomedical research, advanced clinical care, and medical education, Yale School of Medicine will create a research center to study the acute and chronic effects of cannabis and cannabinoids on neurodevelopment and mental health.

The Yale Center for the Science of Cannabis and Cannabinoids will be led by Deepak Cyril D’Souza, MD, Albert E. Kent Professor of Psychiatry and leading expert on the pharmacology of cannabinoids, the university announced.

The school was established in 1810 as the Medical Institution of Yale College – an Ivy League School. It ranks eighth among medical schools funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and sixth in NIH dollars per faculty member.

Announcement of establishment of the center was made January 30, 2023, by Nancy J. Brown, MD, Jean and David W. Wallace Dean of Medicine and C.N.H. Long Professor of Internal Medicine; and John H. Krystal, MD, Robert L. McNeil, Jr. Professor of Translational Research; professor of psychiatry, of neuroscience, and psychology; and chair of the Yale Department of Psychiatry.

Brown and Krystal said the marijuana research center is being created at a time of the industry boom. Connecticut's legal adult-use cannabis market launched in January. The first day of recreational cannabis sales, Jan 10, went smoothly with seven licensed shops selling $251,276 in weed by 5. p.m. The school which is based in the Nutmeg state aims to be the leader in the research of cannabis's effect on our health.

The center plans to use a multipronged and multidisciplinary approach to study the acute and chronic effects of cannabis and cannabinoid, Brown and Krystal said.

The Department of Psychiatry, with support from the dean’s office, will provide initial funding.

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