Tristan Hynes

Dr. Hynes is a behavioural neuroscientist who studies why some brains are more vulnerable to addiction than others. His research explores how motivation, learning, and brain chemistry interact to drive the emergence and persistence of addiction. By uncovering how neurobiology and biological sex contribute to addiction, Dr. Hynes aims to change how we understand the disorder. His work reframes addiction as a condition rooted in learning and biology rather than willpower. He connects fundamental discoveries about brain function with the urgent need for more effective and personalized treatments for addiction.

Before joining Simon Fraser University, Dr. Hynes was a Leverhulme Early Career Fellow at the University of Cambridge, where he worked with Professor David Belin to reveal new roles for astrocytes in shaping the neurochemical pathways that underlie compulsive opioid seeking. He earned his PhD in Neuroscience from the University of British Columbia with Professor Catharine Winstanley, where he investigated how dopamine and reward cues influence risky decision-making. Dr. Hynes’s long-term goal is to advance a science of addiction that accounts for individual differences in biology, psychology, and social experience, paving the way toward more precise and compassionate approaches to prevention and treatment.