Congratulations to Dr. Kenneth Sufka on his appointment as Distinguished Professor at the University of Mississippi. Dr. Sufka is an alumnus of this department, obtaining his bachelor’s, master’s and Ph.D. degrees in psychology from ISU.
Dr. Sufka is a leading international scholar in behavioral neuroscience and psychopharmacology. His research has led to the discovery of the first and still only drug-efficacy screening procedure for treatment-resistant depression, for which he received a patent in 2015.
In 2020 he received a second patent for a novel cannabidiol analog that shows analgesic activity on par with opioids but without the side effects profile for abuse liability of this class of analgesics. This has the potential to address the current opioid abuse crisis. The compound is licensed to a biotech company and is moving toward clinical trials.
Dr. Sufka is also passionate about student success and published a book for undergraduates, “The A Game”. The book has been adopted by a number of colleges and universities for distribution to their freshman classes.