| New Scientist | 7 September 2019Neuroscientist Judith Grisel is exploring why
some people are more prone to drug addiction
than others – using her own experience of
addiction to helpAs a child, what did you want to
do when you grew up?
I spent most of my first decade in creeks turning
over rocks, so maybe I wanted to be a scientist.Explain what you do in one easy paragraph.
I’m interested in understanding what is different
about the brains of those who are at high or low
risk of addiction. We know that a large part of
the variance is inherited, but most of the
biological risk remains unexplained.Why did you end up working in this field?
I had my first experience with alcohol at age 13
and spent the next 10 years taking any and every
mind-altering substance I could get my hands on.
Judging from the nearly transcendent experience
of that first drink, I was probably one of those
innately at risk. I ended up in a treatment centre.
Faced with a choice between an early grave and
abstinence, I wanted neither and thought curing
addiction would provide a way out.Did you have to overcome any particular
challenges to get where you are today?
Ha! I’d been expelled from three schools by the
time I came up with this scheme. Fortunately,
addicts are known for resourcefulness and
perseverance despite adversity, and these
qualities were an asset in graduate school too.Were you good at science at school?
Science courses were my favourites, so yes, when
I went to class I tended to do well in those.What’s the best piece of advice
anyone ever gave you?
Someone once recommended that I “keep
showing up”. I’ve benefited from sustained effort,
even when things don’t seem to be going well.Is there a discovery or achievement you
wish you’d made yourself?
I was astounded by the work of Nachum Dafny
in the late 1980s, showing that opiate addiction
depended on an intact immune system. Now,
30 years later, there’s a burgeoning appreciation
of the critical role of immune signalling in the
brain in stress, pain and addiction.How has your field of study changed in
the time you have been working in it?
I feel like we’ve gained humility. Neuroscience is
such a new field, and it seems there is much more
that we don’t know than there was when I started.If you could have a long conversation
with any scientist, living or dead,
who would it be?
Marian Diamond, who found the first evidence
that the brain changes with experience, now
known as neuroplasticity. Or Candace Pert,
who discovered opiate receptors.What scientific development do you
hope to see in your lifetime?
I’m really happy that sex differences in
neurobiology are finally being given serious
attention. I think we will continue to find
differences and that these are going to further
understanding about general brain function.Do you have an unexpected hobby, and
if so, please will you tell us about it?
I’m a big fan of live music, and especially keen
on so-called jam bands. Much of my extra time
and money goes toward Phish shows.How useful will your skills be after the
apocalypse?
Relevant skills include curiosity and a willingness
to take risks and to try new things.OK, one last thing: tell us something that
will blow our minds...
I’d bet that answers to big questions in
neuroscience aren’t going to be found inside
our heads. Everything is connected, and it is
impossible to understand the brain out of its
broader context – involving such disparate
influences as the night sky, microbiota,
stress and each other. ❚Judith Grisel is professor of psychology at Bucknell
University in Lewisburg, Pennsylvania. Her book
Never Enough: The neuroscience and experience
of addiction is out now“I’d bet that
answers to big
questions in
neuroscience
aren’t going to
be found inside
our heads”
CREDIT: TAYLOR HILL/GETTY IMAGESThe back pages The Q&A
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