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Young Investigator Grant opens new avenues for postdoctoral scholar
Houda Houbeish
Hayley Thorpe’s research is untangling the genetic links between cannabis use and schizophrenia.
By Houda Houbeish
Why do some people experience psychosis after limited exposure to cannabis, while others use cannabis more frequently without experiencing psychotic symptoms?
It’s a question Haley Thorpe, PhD, hopes genetics can answer.
Thorpe, a postdoctoral scholar in the Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, recently received a 2026 Young Investigator Grant from the Brain & Behavior Research Foundation (BBRF) to investigate the genetic relationship between cannabis use and schizophrenia. The grant supports promising early-career scientists pursuing innovative research as they build toward independent research careers.
“I feel very privileged to be among the people who received this grant, many of whom have conducted really fascinating and important research in psychiatry and neuroscience to understand relationships between mental health and the brain,” she said.
For the past seven years, Thorpe has been driven by a curiosity about how differences in people’s genetics influence the brain, behaviour and everyday functioning. Her doctoral and postdoctoral research has focused on biological processes that may make some people more vulnerable to mental health conditions and substance use.
“When somebody has a certain health condition or diagnosis, it’s really hard to look at that in a vacuum. You have to look at the broader spectrum of a person’s life to understand why that disorder manifested and how to appropriately treat it,” said Thorpe.
Cannabis use and schizophrenia: The missing link
Thorpe’s research comes at a time when cannabis use has been on the rise in Canada. The 2024 Canadian Cannabis Survey found that past-year cannabis use among people in Canada increased from 22 per cent in 2018 to 26 per cent in 2024. Six per cent also reported using cannabis daily or almost daily.
Frequent cannabis use is associated with a greater risk of cannabis use disorder and has also been linked to increased odds of schizophrenia diagnosis. But researchers don’t fully understand the relationship between cannabis use and psychosis.
“At the level of cannabis-related individual harms and associations with health, we’re still not 100 per cent sure of its long-term effects on the brain and overall health,” said Thorpe. “It’s been noted that individuals who use cannabis are more likely to develop psychosis and schizophrenia, but researchers are still uncertain why that is. One reason could be that they share biological risk factors, including genetics.”
Advanced methods for more personalized treatments
Thorpe’s research examines the genetic relationship between cannabis use and schizophrenia, recognizing that both occur across a range of experiences – from never using cannabis to having cannabis use disorder, and from having no psychosis symptoms to being diagnosed with schizophrenia.
By separating the genetic factors associated with cannabis use from those associated with schizophrenia, Thorpe’s research could clarify how each contributes to health outcomes and eventually help inform treatments for people experiencing schizophrenia, problematic cannabis use, or both.
Thorpe’s previous research found that genetic factors associated with cannabis use were also linked to schizophrenia outcomes, and vice versa. However, limitations in the available data made it difficult to determine whether those connections reflected genuinely shared genetic factors or simply the fact that cannabis use and schizophrenia occurred in the same study participants.
With the BBRF funding, Thorpe will use advanced statistical methods to more precisely define the genetic overlap between cannabis use and schizophrenia. Identifying their unique and shared genetics could offer new clues about the biology underlying both conditions and, ultimately, identify potential targets for treatment.
Receiving the BBRF award at this stage of her career is particularly significant for Thorpe as she works toward becoming an independent researcher.
“This will enable new connections and collaborations that otherwise would not have been possible,” she said. “I’m especially excited to work with experts in areas I haven’t explored closely before, particularly neuroimaging. It’s really kick-starting my own independent research trajectory.”