National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA)

People with a genetic variant of a neurotransmitter gene may have an increased risk of addiction to alcohol and other substances later in life if they were exposed to childhood stress, such as divorce or emotionally distant parents, and other adverse experiences, according to recent research. The study led by researchers at the University of Oklahoma College of Medicine in...

Office of the Chief, LCTS National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism National Institutes of Health Clinical Research Center 10 Center Drive, Room 10-CRC/1E-5334, MSC: 1108 Bethesda MD 20892-1108 telephone: 301.435.9386 Current staff Dena Stringer, BA Clinical Lab Secretary telephone: 301.435.9376 dena.stringer@mail.nih.gov Dena Stringer is responsible for administrative support for all of LCTS, including travel, procurement (except lab-procurement), and personnel...

Recent research from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) sheds new light on habitual behaviors, specifically the circuits in the brain that allow mice to break from routine actions. Such shifting between old habits and new behavior aimed at accomplishing a particular goal are critical to flexible decision-making in everyday life. It also has important implications for...

Alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana are the substances American adolescents use the most. A recent study led by researchers at the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism examined how adolescents’ substance use patterns are associated with substance use disorders in young adulthood. Their findings, published in Drug and Alcohol Dependence in March 2014, show that adolescents who drink alcohol and...

A study reported in the December issue of Nature Neuroscience (Volume 2, Number 12, pages 1084-1090) identifies a new cell membrane channel where ethanol, the alcohol found in intoxicating beverages, may act. Neurobiologists from the Waggoner Center for Alcohol and Addiction Research and Section on Neurobiology, and the Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, College of Pharmacy, University of Texas (UT)...

NIH researchers seek to expand treatment options The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) will conduct a clinical trial of gabapentin enacarbil as a potential treatment for alcohol use disorder (AUD). NIAAA estimates that the six-month trial will begin in the first half of 2015 and will enroll approximately 350 participants. The study will assess the safety and...

Xin Jin, Ph.D., a postdoctoral fellow at the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), part of the National Institutes of Health, received the Peter and Patricia Gruber International Research Award from the Society for Neuroscience today during the society’s annual meeting in Washington, D.C. The $25,000 prize is awarded annually to two young scientists whose research includes significant...

A molecular pathway within the brain's reward circuitry appears to contribute to alcohol abuse, according to laboratory mouse research supported by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). The findings, published online today in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, also provide evidence that the pathway may be a...

NIAAA Spectrum is an online Webzine published by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. It features the latest news from the alcohol research field, infographics, and interviews with NIAAA staff and researchers from the field. The latest issue is now available. In this issue... Drinking and the Liver: Seeking Better Treatments for Alcoholic Liver Disease The liver is...

New research by NIAAA scientists shows that an experimental drug that targets molecular sites in the liver and other tissues without acting on identical sites in the brain, holds promise as an effective treatment for obesity and its complications. In the July 26, 2012 issue of the journal Cell Metabolism, researchers led by NIAAA Scientific Director George Kunos, M.D., Ph.D...

What: The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), part of the National Institutes of Health, announces that Philip A. May, Ph.D., will deliver the 23rd Annual Mark Keller Honorary Lecture. The title of his presentation is “Prevalence of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders: Characteristics and Correlates.” Who: Dr. May is an internationally recognized expert in fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS)...

NATIONAL ADVISORY COUNCIL ON ALCOHOL ABUSE AND ALCOHOLISM Summary of the 119th Meeting September 17–18, 2008 The National Advisory Council on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism convened for its 119th meeting at 5:30 p.m. on September 17, 2008, at the Fishers Lane Conference Center in Rockville, Maryland , in a closed session. Dr. Abraham Bautista presided over the closed review of...

Summary of the 120th Meeting February 4-5, 2009 The National Advisory Council on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism convened for its 120th meeting at 5:30 p.m. on February 4, 2009, at the FishersLaneConferenceCenter in Rockville, Maryland, in a closed session. Dr. Abraham Bautista presided over the closed review of grant applications. The NIAAA National Advisory Council reconvened in closed session on...

Summary of the 121th Meeting June 10-11, 2009 The National Advisory Council on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) convened for its 121st meeting at 5:30 p.m. on June 10, 2009, at the Fishers Lane Conference Center in Rockville, Maryland, in a closed session. Dr. Abraham Bautista presided over the closed review of grant applications and consideration of MERIT Award nominations...

Voluntary movements involve the coordinated activation of two brain pathways that connect parts of deep brain structures called the basal ganglia, according to a study in mice by researchers at the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), part of the National Institutes of Health. The findings, which challenge the classical view of basal ganglia function, were published online...

Publication includes information on effective but underutilized approaches A new resource from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) will help individuals and families understand available treatment options for alcohol problems. Developed by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), part of the NIH, Treatment for Alcohol Problems: Finding and Getting Help, covers the latest research-based treatments and what...

First prize winner will be awarded $200,000 In the search for a wearable or otherwise discreet device capable of measuring blood alcohol levels in real time, the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) has issued the Wearable Alcohol Biosensor Challenge. The wearable biosensor will aid researchers, clinicians, therapists and individuals by providing more accurate data on how much...

MEETING OF THE INTERAGENCY COORDINATING COMMITTEE ON FETAL ALCOHOL SPECTRUM DISORDERS National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism 5635 Fishers Lane, Terrace Level Conference Center, Rockville, Maryland 20852 Thursday, April 14, 2016 AGENDA Videocast: https://videocast.nih.gov/summary.asp?live=18890&bhcp=1 8:30 A.M. Welcome, Introductions, and Comments Kenneth R. Warren, Ph.D., Senior Advisor, NIAAA, NIH; ICCFASD Chairperson 8:40 A.M. Overview of ICCFASD Mission and Goals Marcia...

In recognition of his contribution to the development of scientific collaborations between France and the United States, George F. Koob, Ph.D., director of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), part of the National Institutes of Health, has received the insignia of Chevalier de la Légion d’honneur (Knight of the Legion of Honor) from the government of France...

In recognition of his contribution to the development of scientific collaborations between France and the United States, George F. Koob, Ph.D., director of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), part of the National Institutes of Health, has received the insignia of Chevalier de la Légion d’honneur (Knight of the Legion of Honor) from the government of France...