Don’t miss the next Kahlert Institute for Addiction Medicine Seminar Series!
This engaging event showcases groundbreaking preclinical and clinical addiction research while fostering collaborative discussions to drive innovative solutions.
Topic:
Cocaine Alters Neural Coding of Reward-Based Choices in Rats
Wednesday, April 8, 2026 | 12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m.
Hosick Lecture Hall, Bressler Research Building | 655 W. Baltimore St.
Upcoming Presentations
May 13, 2026: Eric J. Nestler, MD, PhD – Dean, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai; Executive Vice President and Chief Scientific Officer, Mount Sinai Health System (Presentation title TBD)
Past Seminar Series Presentations
2026
March 4, 2026: Nicotine Data Blitz
Cassandra Gipson-Reichardt, PhD – Associate Professor, Pharmacology and Nutritional Sciences, University of Kentucky College of Medicine
Presentation Title: Progesterone Sex-Specifically Reduces Nicotine Use and Ameliorates Nicotine-Induced Transcriptomic Changes in the Female Nucleus Accumbens: Implications for the Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Gonadal Axis
Mikhail Koffarnus, PhD – Associate Professor, Vice Chair of Research, Pharmacology and Nutritional Sciences, University of Kentucky College of Medicine
Presentation Title: Effects of Remembered Nicotine and Cannabis Withdrawal on Demand for Cigarettes and Marijuana in Experienced Users
Wallace Pickworth, PhD – Formerly of the National Institute on Drug Abuse Intramural Research Program and Battelle Memorial Institute
Presentation Title: Nicotine Pouches: A Newer Means of Rapid Nicotine Delivery
February 11, 2026: When Studies Don’t Fit Patients and Patients Don’t Fit Studies: Methadone Stories Highlighting the Challenges of Translational Addiction Research
Aaron Greenblatt, MD – Associate Professor, Family & Community Medicine, University of Maryland School of Medicine
Presentation Title: Why Most Patients Don't Qualify for Our Studies: Real Cases Illustrating the Challenges of Translational Addiction Research
January 14, 2026: Maryland's Opioid Ecosystem: System Interactions and Opportunities to Improve Opioid Related Outcomes
Malik Burnett, MD, MBA, MPH – Addiction Medicine Physician UMMC Midtown Campus Center for Addiction Medicine
Presentation Title: Maryland's Opioid Ecosystem: System Interactions and Opportunities to Improve Opioid Related Outcomes
2025
December 10, 2025: Neuroimaging Insights Into Substance Use: A Focus on Nicotine Dependence
Amy Janes, PhD – Senior Investigator, Deputy Chief, Neuroimaging Research Branch Chief, Cognitive and Pharmacological Neuroimaging Section, National Institute on Drug Abuse Intramural Research Program
Presentation Title: Neuroimaging Insights Into Substance Use: A Focus on Nicotine Dependence
November 12, 2025: Opioid Use Disorder: Inpatient Management
Aditi Ringwala, MD – Assistant Professor, Medicine, University of Maryland School of Medicine
Presentation Title: "Opioid Use Disorder: Inpatient Management"
October 8, 2025: Using Effort-Cost Decision-Making Frameworks to Better Understand Motivational Impairment in Psychiatric Disorders
Adam Culbreth, PhD – Assistant Professor, Psychiatry, University of Maryland School of Medicine
Presentation Title: "Using Effort-Cost Decision-Making Frameworks to Better Understand Motivational Impairment in Psychiatric Disorders"
September 10, 2025: Novel Approaches to the Treatment of Opioid Use Disorder and Overdose
Sandra Comer, PhD – Professor of Neurobiology, Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University; Research Scientist VII, New York State Psychiatric Institute
Presentation Title: "Novel Approaches to the Treatment of Opioid Use Disorder and Overdose"
March 12, 2025: Psycho-social and Behavioral Interventions
Marco Venniro, PhD – Associate Professor, Neurobiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine
Presentation Title: "The Role of Social Behavior on Substance Use Disorders"
Melanie Bennett, PhD – Professor, Psychiatry, University of Maryland School of Medicine; Division Director for the Division of Psychiatric Research Services
Presentation Title: "Supporting Behavior Change in Persons With Substance Use Disorders"
January 15, 2025: Substance Use in Pregnancy
Mary Kay Lobo, PhD – Professor, Neurobiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine; Co-Director, Center for Substance Use in Pregnancy; Associate Director, Kahlert Institute for Addiction Medicine
Presentation Title: "Using a Preclinical Model of Perinatal Fentanyl Exposure to Understand Long Lasting Biological Impacts"
Courtney Townsel, MD, MS – Assistant Professor, Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, Director of Perinatal Research, University of Maryland School of Medicine
Presentation Title: "Opioid Use in Pregnancy: How Placental Transport and Metabolism Shape Neonatal Withdrawal Outcomes"
2024
December 4, 2024: Aging and Addiction Research
Bethea "Annie" Kleykamp, PhD – Assistant Professor, Psychiatry, University of Maryland School of Medicine
Presentation Title: "Addressing Addiction Among Older Adults: A Forgotten Population"
Michy Kelly, PhD – Associate Professor, Neurobiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine
Presentation Title: "Consideration for Conduction Drug Studies in Aging Mice"
September 11, 2024: Cannabis Research
Joseph Cheer, PhD – Professor, Neurobiology, University of Maryland School of Medicine
Presentation Title: "Endogenous cannabinoids and the avoidance of fear"
Katrina Mark, MD, FACOG, FASAM – Associate Professor, Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, Chief of the Division of General Obstetrics & Gynecology, University of Maryland School of Medicine
Presentation Title: "Cannabis use in pregnancy: patterns, perceptions and problems"
February 22, 2024: Inaugural Seminar Series
Lorenzo Leggio, MD, PhD – Clinical Director, National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) Intramural Research Program (IRP)
Presentation Title: "Mind the Gut: Developing New Pharmacotherapies for Addiction"

Matthew Roesch, PhD