Joao P. De Aquino, MD, assistant professor of psychiatry, has been selected to receive the 2026 Young Investigator Award from the International Narcotics Research Conference (INRC).
The honor recognizes emerging leaders whose research is advancing the study of opioid pharmacology and function.
As part of the award, De Aquino has been invited to present his current research at the 2026 INRC annual meeting, which will take place July 13–16 in Denver, Colo. INRC will sponsor his meeting registration and travel.
De Aquino directs the Pain and Addiction Interaction Neuroscience (PAIN) Lab at Yale, where his research focuses on the intersection of chronic pain and substance use disorders and on the development of novel, non-opioid therapeutics.
INRC is a NIDA-supported international meeting that brings together investigators focused on opioids, pain, addiction, and related areas of neuroscience and therapeutics. The conference provides a venue for scientific exchange and collaboration among basic, translational, and clinical researchers.