Maxwell Leung

Dr. Leung applies a One Health approach to study the positive and negative impacts of increased production and use of cannabis and hemp on the health of people, animals, and the environment. The key areas of his expertise include molecular toxicology, data visualization, systems biology, and risk assessment. He has a strong interest in the potential health risks of medical cannabis use – including the hazards of pesticide, metal, solvent, and microbial contaminants – to susceptible patients with neurological diseases. Additionally, he is the founding director of the ASU Cannabis Analytics, Safety and Health Initiative - a multidisciplinary effort dedicated to advancing research, education, and workforce training for safer uses of cannabis, hemp, and cannabinoids.

Prior to joining ASU, Dr. Leung worked in the Department of Pesticide Regulation at the California Environmental Protection Agency. He participated in California’s effort to end the use of the pesticide chlorpyrifos and co-authored the scientific assessment of chlorpyrifos as a toxic air contaminant. Additionally, he contributed to the establishment of the state’s limits on pesticide residues in legalized cannabis. Currently, he is serving on the Medical Marijuana Testing Advisory Council of the Arizona Department of Health Services. He is currently teaching in the Pharmacology and Toxicology (B.S.), Biological Data Science (M.S.), and Population Health (Ph.D.) programs at ASU.