Education & Training
- PhD in Psychology – Behavioral, Psychiatric, and Statistical Genetics: University of Colorado Boulder, 2017
- BSPH in Biostatistics: University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 2013
Major Awards
- NIDA-NIAAA Early Career Investigator Showcase awardee, 2021
- WCPG Early Career Investigator Program – Oral Presentation Award winner, 2019
- RSA Memorial Award, 2019
- ASHG Reviewer’s Choice Abstract, 2017
Research Interests
My long-term research goal is to better understand the genetic architecture of psychiatric disorders, particularly focusing on substance use and addictions. Within addictions, I am particularly interested in delineating differences between early stages of casual drug use from later, maladaptive stages of loss of control and impairment. In this context, I have been drawn to the study of common drugs of use, such as alcohol and cannabis. My research aims to link these stages of casual use and use disorders to other, frequently co-occurring psychiatric disorders and relevant mental health conditions, including schizophrenia and suicidal thoughts and behaviors. I am currently one of the analysts for the Psychiatric Genomics Consortium’s Substance Use Disorders working group and a co-investigator in the Collaborative Study on the Genetics of Alcoholism.
Key Publications
- Johnson EC, Demontis D, Thorgeirsson TE, Walters RK, Polimanti R, Hatoum AS, Sanchez-Roige S, Paul SE, Wendt FR, Clarke TK, Lai D, Reginsson GW, Zhou H, He J, Baranger DAA, Gudbjartsson DF, Wedow R, Adkins DE, Adkins AE, Alexander J, Bacanu SA, Bigdeli TB, Boden J, Brown SA, Bucholz KK, Bybjerg-Grauholm J, Corley RP, Degenhardt L, Dick DM, Domingue BW, Fox L, Goate AM, Gordon SD, Hack LM, Hancock DB, Hartz SM, Hickie IB, Hougaard DM, Krauter K, Lind PA, McClintick JN, McQueen MB, Meyers JL, Montgomery GW, Mors O, Mortensen PB, Nordentoft M, Pearson JF, Peterson RE, Reynolds MD, Rice JP, Runarsdottir V, Saccone NL, Sherva R, Silberg JL, Tarter RE, Tyrfingsson T, Wall TL, Webb BT, Werge T, Wetherill L, Wright MJ, Zellers S, Adams MJ, Bierut LJ, Boardman JD, Copeland WE, Farrer LA, Foroud TM, Gillespie NA, Grucza RA, Harris KM, Heath AC, Hesselbrock V, Hewitt JK, Hopfer CJ, Horwood J, Iacono WG, Johnson EO, Kendler KS, Kennedy MA, Kranzler HR, Madden PAF, Maes HH, Maher BS, Martin NG, McGue M, McIntosh AM, Medland SE, Nelson EC, Porjesz B, Riley BP, Stallings MC, Vanyukov MM, Vrieze S, , Davis LK, Bogdan R, Gelernter J, Edenberg HJ, Stefansson K, Børglum AD, Agrawal A, (2020 12). A large-scale genome-wide association study meta-analysis of cannabis use disorder. Lancet Psychiatry. 7(12): 1032-1045.
Read publication »A large-scale genome-wide association study meta-analysis of cannabis use disorder. - Johnson EC, Chang Y, Agrawal A, (2020 Jun). An update on the role of common genetic variation underlying substance use disorders. Curr Genet Med Rep. 8(2): 35-46.
Read publication »An update on the role of common genetic variation underlying substance use disorders. - Evans LM, Johnson EC, Melroy-Greif WE, Hewitt JK, Hoeffer CA, Keller MC, Saba LM, Stitzel JA, Ehringer MA, (2020 07). The Role of A Priori-Identified Addiction and Smoking Gene Sets in Smoking Behaviors. Nicotine Tob Res. 22(8): 1310-1315.
Read publication »The Role of A Priori-Identified Addiction and Smoking Gene Sets in Smoking Behaviors. - Border R, Johnson EC, Evans LM, Smolen A, Berley N, Sullivan PF, Keller MC, (2019 05). No Support for Historical Candidate Gene or Candidate Gene-by-Interaction Hypotheses for Major Depression Across Multiple Large Samples. Am J Psychiatry. 176(5): 376-387.
Read publication »No Support for Historical Candidate Gene or Candidate Gene-by-Interaction Hypotheses for Major Depression Across Multiple Large Samples. - Johnson EC, Evans LM, Keller MC, (2018 07). Relationships between estimated autozygosity and complex traits in the UK Biobank. PLoS Genet. 14(7): e1007556.
Read publication »Relationships between estimated autozygosity and complex traits in the UK Biobank.
Funded Research Projects
American Foundation for Suicide Prevention(PI):Elucidating the Polygenic Architecture Underlying Suicidal Thoughts and Behaviors
Brain and Behavior Research Foundation(PI):The impact of prenatal cannabis exposure on placental epigenetics – implications for newborn brain and socio-emotional development
NIAAA(PI): Identifying Contributions to the Genetic Correlation Between Alcohol Use Disorders and Schizophrenia
NIDA(Significant Contributor):7/7 Psychiatric Genomics Consortium: Advancing Discovery and Impact
NIDA(PI):Identifying genetic sources of comorbidity between cannabis and schizophrenia using genome-wide and integrative omics data