Consult Dr. Gold

Honors

Distinguished Alumnus Awards

  • 20th Anniversary of: Dr. Mark S. Gold, M.D. ’75, Distinguished Professor and Alumnus
  • Wall of Fame | University of Florida, College of Medicine, 1988
  • University of Florida, 1984
  • University of Florida, Wall of Fame, 1985
  • Washington University, 1989
  • Yale University, 2008
  • University of Florida, Distinguished Alumni Professor, 2011 – 2013
Dr. Mark S. Gold, M.D. class 1975
Mark Gold, M.D., the 17th Distinguished Alumni Professor

Mark Gold, M.D., the 17th Distinguished Alumni Professor for 2011 to 2013 as selected by UF and the UF Alumni Association, leads the crowd doing the Gator chomp during the UF-Vanderbilt homecoming football game.

Mark S. Gold, MD with a UFAA Medal for service

Danita Nias, Executive Director of UF Alumni Association presents Mark S. Gold, MD with a UFAA Medal for service as the University of Florida Distinguished Alumni Professor for a second term (2011-2014)

Academic Honors / Prizes / Research Awards

Mark S. Gold is widely regarded as one of the pioneering figures in modern addiction medicine whose scientific discoveries transformed the understanding, treatment, and public perception of addictive disorders. Over five decades, his work helped establish addiction as a brain disease rather than a moral failing, fundamentally changing clinical practice, public policy, and medical education.

In the 1970s, Gold revolutionized the understanding of opioid addiction and withdrawal. His research demonstrated that opioid withdrawal was driven by specific neurobiological mechanisms and could be effectively treated with medications targeting these pathways. These discoveries provided a scientific foundation for modern medication-based treatment of opioid use disorder and helped shift addiction treatment from ideology to evidence-based medicine.

In the 1980s, Gold again challenged conventional wisdom by demonstrating that cocaine was profoundly addictive despite the absence of severe physical withdrawal symptoms. His research identified the central role of dopamine and brain reward pathways in cocaine addiction, helping establish the concept that pathological drug craving and compulsive drug seeking could be as powerful as physical dependence. This work transformed addiction neuroscience and expanded the understanding of addiction beyond withdrawal-based models.

Gold subsequently helped pioneer the application of addiction science to overeating and obesity. Collaborating with leaders such as Kelly Brownell and mentoring researchers including Ashley Gearhardt and Nicole Avena, he advanced the concept that highly processed foods can activate reward pathways in ways similar to addictive drugs. This work contributed to the emerging field of food addiction and helped bridge addiction medicine and obesity treatment, including the use of medications across both disorders.

His research contributions extend beyond substance use disorders. Gold conducted groundbreaking studies on the health effects of secondhand and thirdhand tobacco smoke, cannabis smoke exposure, and opium use in Afghanistan, broadening scientific understanding of addiction-related public health risks.

As an educator and physician, Gold helped establish addiction medicine as a recognized medical specialty. Before formal addiction training programs existed, he developed apprenticeship-based training models for physicians and practitioners. He later helped establish academic addiction medicine programs and fellowships at major medical centers, contributing to the professionalization of the field and training generations of addiction specialists.

Gold's influence extends beyond addiction research. As an inventor and translational scientist, his work contributed to technologies developed by AxoGen that advanced peripheral nerve repair and restoration, benefiting thousands of patients worldwide. His career demonstrates an unusual ability to translate laboratory discoveries into treatments that improve patient care.

His scientific impact is reflected in an extensive body of highly cited research, making him one of the most referenced addiction researchers in the world. He has received numerous lifetime achievement awards and honors from scientific, medical, public health, prevention, and law enforcement organizations. These recognitions acknowledge not only his scientific discoveries but also his leadership in reducing stigma by demonstrating that addiction is a chronic brain disorder requiring medical treatment.

Gold also served as an expert consultant to major public education campaigns, including the influential "This Is Your Brain on Drugs" initiative and subsequent national anti-drug media efforts. Through research, education, policy advocacy, and public communication, he helped reshape societal understanding of addiction.

Taken together, Mark S. Gold's career represents a rare combination of scientific innovation, clinical impact, public health leadership, medical education, and technological invention. His work transformed addiction from a poorly understood and highly stigmatized condition into a scientifically grounded medical disorder and helped establish many of the principles that guide addiction treatment and neuroscience today.

30 Year of Service Award to the DEA Presented to Dr Gold by Tom Harrigan , DEA

30 Year of Service Award to the DEA Presented to Dr Gold by Tom Harrigan , DEA

Dr.’s Mark Gold and Bruce Kone present White Coat to Don Dizney

Dr.’s Mark Gold and Bruce Kone present White Coat to Don Dizney

NAATP Lifetime Achievement Award

NAATP Lifetime Achievement Award

A Tribute to Drs George Aghajanian and George Henniger

A Tribute to Drs George Aghajanian and George Henniger: Over 100 Years of Leadership, Research, and Mentoring Excellence at Yale (2014). (from right to left) Nash Family Professor of Neuroscience, Director of the Friedman Brain Institute, and Dean for Academic Affairs at Mt Sinai Eric Nestler MD, PhD. Gold, Mt Sinai University Dean Dennis Charney, M.D. George Henninger, George Aghajanian, and Chairman of Psychiatry John Krystal MD.

Elected Memberships (2005 – Present)

  • Phi Beta Kappa
  • Society for Neuroscience
  • Fellow (F.C.P.), American College of Clinical Pharmacology,
  • American Psychiatric Association,
  • Distinguished Fellow, International Society of Psychoneuroendocrinology
  • American Association for the Advancement of Science
  • American Medical Association
  • American Occupational Medical Association
  • Society of Biological Psychiatry
  • The William Greenleaf Eliot Society, Washington University
  • American Medical Society on Alcoholism
  • Founding Member, American Academy of Psychiatrists in Alcoholism and Addictions (AAPAA)
  • American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM)
  • American Medical Society on Alcoholism
  • Association for Medical Education and Research in Substance Abuse (AMERSA)
  • College on Problems of Drug Dependence (CPDD)
  • Florida Psychiatric Society, Addictions Committee
  • Collegium Internationale Neuro-Psychopharmacologicum (CINP)
  • NAMI
  • American College of Psychiatrists
  • Distinguished Member – Cosmos Club
  • Florida Blue Key
  • Alpha Omega Alpha

Fellow Status

  • Fellow (F.A.P.A.), American Psychiatric Association
  • Fellow (F.C.P.) American College of Clinical Pharmacology
  • Fellow, The Academy of Medicine of New Jersey
  • Distinguished Fellow (F.A.P.A.), American Psychiatric Association
  • Distinguished Fellow (F.C.P.) American College of Clinical Pharmacology, 2011
  • Distinguished Life Fellow, American Psychiatric Association
  • Distinguished Fellow of the American Society of Addiction Medicine (DFASAM)
Co-Chair Southern Coastal Conference on Addictions

Co-Chair Southern Coastal Conference on Addictions