Introduction to the 1999 Joseph Cochin Award Recipient.pdf

1999 Joseph Cochin Award Acceptance Speech.pdf

Sari Izenwasser, Ph.D. is currently a Research Associate Professor in the Department of Neurology at the University of Miami School of Medicine. She received her B.A. in Psychology in 1980 from Florida International University in Miami, FL. Dr. Izenwasser received both an M.A. (1983) and a Ph.D. (1987) in Experimental/ Physiological Psychology from Boston University. Her research, in the laboratory of Dr. Conan Kornetsky, was focused on better understanding the interaction between stimulants and opioids, as related to both their reinforcing and analgesic effects. She then did a postdoctoral fellowship at LSU Medical School in Shreveport, LA, followed by a Research Assistantship at the Uniformed Services University in the laboratory of Dr. Brian Cox. While there, Dr. Izenwasser began her studies of the effects of chronic cocaine on the dopamine transporter and on opioid receptors. This research was continued at the NIDA Intramural Research Program, in the Psychobiology Section headed by Dr. Jonathan Katz, where she was awarded a National Research Council Fellowship followed by a Senior Staff Fellowship. While at NIDA, she expanded her studies on opioid/ cocaine interactions and was involved in studies to develop a medication for the treatment of cocaine abuse. At the University of Miami she is continuing her studies and, in collaboration with Dr. Deborah Mash, is expanding her focus to the regulation of the dopamine transporter and opioid receptors in the human brain by substance abuse and neurological disorders. She is an author on 60 publications, all on the neuro- chemical and behavioral effects of drug abuse. Dr. Izenwasser has attended the annual meetings since 1988 and is currently on the CPDD Travel Awards Committee.