NIDA’s Gardner Wins Lifetime Achievement Award

On hand as Dr. Eliot Gardner of NIDA’s neuropsychopharmacology section (third from l) accepts the Lifetime Achievement Award are (from l) Dr. George Koob, NIAAA director and president of IDARS; Dr. Sâadeddine El Othmani, head of government, Kingdom of Morocco; and Dr. Syed Ali, IDARS executive officer. 

NIDA’s Dr. Eliot Gardner recently received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the International Drug Abuse Research Society (IDARS). The award, which honors Gardner’s lifetime contributions to addiction medicine and addiction neurobiology, was presented at the IDARS meeting held Sept. 2-6 in Casablanca, Morocco.

Gardner counts his discovery that delta-9-THC activates the pleasure/reward circuitry in the brain, and that cannabis is therefore potentially addictive, among his greatest achievements. He has also worked on highly selective dopamine D3 receptor antagonists, cannabinoids, endocannabinoids and (most recently) tetrahydrocannabivarins, as well as slow-onset, long-acting atypical dopamine transport blockers as potential anti-addiction, anti-craving and anti-relapse medications. 

When asked about the importance of this award to him, Gardner replied, “It’s deeply important to me. The International Drug Abuse Research Society is comprised of some of the most creative and productive researchers in the field of addiction. The fact that George Koob is president of the society pretty much says it all. To be so honored by such an outstanding group of colleagues in addiction medicine and addiction biology is deeply moving and deeply appreciated.”