CONTENTS

Congress passed the legislation for the FY 2002 Appropriation in January. The FY 2002 NIAAA Appropriation of $386 million provides a 12.8 percent increase over the FY 2001 level of $342 million. Included in the appropriation is $24 million for HIV/AIDS research.

The FY 2003 budget request for the NIAAA is $418 million, including HIV/AIDS, an increase of $33 million and 8.4 percent over the FY 2002 level. The budget request for HIV/AIDS research is $26 million.

Research Project Grants - Under the President's Request, the Institute plans to support approximately 191 competing research project grants and fund approximately one-third of approved applications. The FY 2003 request provides average cost increases for competing RPGs equal to the Biomedical Research and Development Price Index (BRDPI) estimated at 4.0 percent. Noncompeting RPGs will be funded at committed levels which included increases of 3 percent on average for recurring direct costs.

Alcohol Research Centers - The centers program budget will support 15 research centers at $27.5 million.

Other Research - $10.9 million is provided to support 85 research career awards in FY 2003. Cooperative agreements will be funded at $13.2 million.

Research Training is provided $9.8 million for 247 pre- and postdoctoral trainees in full time training positions, the same number as in FY 2002. Stipend levels for NRSA trainees will increase by 4 percent over FY 2002 levels.

Research and Development Contracts are provided $35.5 million. This level allows increases in outreach efforts and a new initiative to enhance treatment and prevention research.

Intramural Research Program - $41.6 million has been allocated to maintain the Intramural Research Program's overall level of effort with 114 FTE's for FY 2003.

Research Management Support (RMS) activities are provided $22.3 million with 147 FTE's for FY 2003.

II. WEB HIGHLIGHTS
(www.niaaa.nih.gov)

NIAAA has contracted with UserWorks, Inc. to provide usability testing of the NIAAA Website. Nine individuals representing health care providers and the general public were selected to participate in this study.

Phase 1 of the testing was completed in November, and the results were presented to the NIAAA Internet Committee. Overall, the Website ranked well, with minimal problems identified as needing attention. Participants were favorably impressed with the large amount of useful information available on the Website, especially the Frequently Asked Questions section, pamphlets and brochures, and the graphics gallery. Plans are underway to assess the problems identified, make changes, and conduct Phase II testing of the revised Website.

The Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) on Integrated Alcohol Sensing and Data Analysis System Program is now available on the NIAAA Website. The announcement is posted under the "Highlights" and the "Contracts" sections on NIAAA's Website. Because the focus of this program is on systemic methodology, proposals involving teams of investigators having expertise that spans all key areas of sensor system design, data analysis, as well as applications are appropriate. To assist in the teaming process, a Website containing information presented at this workshop has been established at URL: https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20080916102850/http://www.sainc.com/niaaa. This site also allows individual researchers and organizations with specific, applicable expertise or capabilities to provide non-proprietary descriptions of their capabilities and interests. The site will remain active from the date of issuance of this BAA until approximately April 5, 2002.

III. NIH ACTIVITIES HIGHLIGHTS

This past October, NIH hosted its final COPR meeting of 2001. COPR members are responsible for bringing a public view to NIH activities, programs, and decision-making; conveying information about NIH processes and progress to the broader public and looking at NIH operations to help the Agency evaluate its performance. In support of this meeting, NIAAA's Public Liaison Officer, OPPL staff member, Kelly Green Kahn, participated on a COPR meeting panel to illustrate the variety of outreach activities conducted throughout NIH Public Liaison Offices. Other OPPL Outreach staff, Fred Donodeo and Allisen Stewart, also participated with COPR members in breakout sessions which addressed NIH outreach through regional meetings and health disparities/special populations. Additional information about COPR can be found at: https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20080916102850/http://public-council.nih.gov/.

IV. NIAAA ACTIVITIES HIGHLIGHTS

Dr. Raynard S. Kington, M.D., Ph.D., became Acting Director of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA), on January 2, 2002. Dr. Kington has served as NIH Associate Director for Behavioral and Social Sciences Research and Director of the NIH Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research since November 2000, positions he will retain while serving as NIAAA Acting Director.

Dr. Kington came to NIH from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). As Director of the Division of Health Examination Statistics in the CDC's National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS), he led the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES), a comprehensive, ongoing survey of the health status, health behaviors, and diet of people in the United States. Before joining the CDC, Dr. Kington was a Senior Scientist at the RAND Corporation, where he co-directed the Drew University / RAND Center on Health and Aging.

Dr. Kington earned undergraduate and medical degrees from the University of Michigan and then completed his residency training in Internal Medicine at Michael Reese Medical Center in Chicago. He attended the University of Pennsylvania as a Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholar, earning his M.B.A. and his Ph.D. in Health Policy and Economics from The Wharton School.

Board-certified in Internal Medicine, Geriatric Medicine, and Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Dr. Kington's research has focused on social factors as determinants of health. His research has included studies of the role of socioeconomic status in explaining differences in health across populations; the determinants of health care services utilization; the health status and health behaviors of Hispanic populations; and the economic impact of health care expenditures among the elderly.

The Mark Keller Honorary Lecture and Award originally scheduled for November 29, 2001 will take place on April 11, 2002, in Masur Auditorium, NIH Campus, Bethesda, MD. The 2001 award recipient and lecturer, Harold Kalant M.D., Ph.D. is internationally recognized as an authority in the field of alcohol and drug dependency and toxicity research who has contributed greatly to the understanding of the basic biological properties of excessive drinking. His fundamental research over four decades has delved extensively into the pharmacologic actions of excessive alcohol consumption, with special emphasis on the behavioral and neurochemical factors involved in alcohol tolerance. The title of Dr. Kalant's lecture is, "Comparison of Mechanisms of Tolerance and Dependence Among Alcohol, Opiates, and Other Psychoactive Drugs."

The 2002 Senator Harold Hughes Memorial Award was conferred at the 2002 Public Policy Conference, held on February 24-26, 2002, at the Hyatt Regency Washington on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism established the Senator Harold Hughes Memorial Award in 1998 in recognition of Senator Hughes' tremendous commitment toward improving the lives of people affected by alcoholism. Previous winners of the award include Dr. Jean Kinney, Sis Wenger and Migs Woodside.

Under the continued supervision of NIAAA Executive Office, Stephen Long, and with assistance from members of the Division of Clinical and Prevention Research (DCPR) and the Division of Biometry and Epidemiology (DBE), OPPL is proceeding with a variety of projects related to the NIAAA College Drinking Initiative. Specific components of this initiative include:

Subcommittee Report: The Council Subcommittee Report is in the final draft stage. Members of the Subcommittee have provided final comments which are currently being incorporated. The individual panel reports also are being finalized as well as a series of commissioned papers for submission to a peer-reviewed journal.

Brochures: Five brochures are being developed which will highlight the findings of the subcommittee for specific audiences. Presently, individual brochures are being developed for college presidents, parents, community leaders, high school guidance counselors, and student peer educators. Experts in these specific topic areas have provided input which will be incorporated into the final products.

College Staff Handbook: A handbook for college programming staff is being developed by researchers who have been active in the Subcommittee since its inception. The researchers have provided a final draft, which is currently being circulated among Subcommittee members for final comment.

Presentations at National Meetings: NIAAA sponsored a College Drinking Initiative Panel at the National Conference of the U.S. Department of Education's Safe and Drug-Free Schools Program. The panel, which consisted of Ellen Gold, Ph.D., Director, University Health Services, Eastern Michigan University; Joan Masters, University of Missouri, Student Representative; and Fred Donodeo presented selected papers commissioned by the Subcommittee. Bill DeJong of the Higher Education Center for Alcohol and Other Drug Prevention also summarized the work of the Subcommittee in a plenary address.

Information about the College Drinking Initiative can be found at: https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20080916102850/http://www.collegedrinkingprevention.gov/.
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The Leadership initiative has moved forward in a number of areas since September:

Mrs. Michele Ridge, former First Lady of Pennsylvania and active initiative member, became Chair of the Governors' Spouses Emeritus Group following the events of September 11 and President Bush's appointment of Governor Ridge as the first Secretary of Homeland Security. Mrs. Kathy Schweiker, the new First Lady of Pennsylvania, promptly joined the Leadership initiative.

The new Leadership Website at www.alcoholfreechildren.org was launched on October 5 and immediately began receiving a notable amount of traffic. The site is listed on all major search engines, and traffic is coming from both these engines and other linked prevention-related sites.

The Governors' spouses continued their activities in support of the initiative. For example, Wyoming First Lady Sherri Geringer was the keynote speaker at an October conference sponsored by Cheyenne Chemical Abuse Advocacy Recovery Education Support. She later accompanied Wyoming youth to Florida's 15th Annual State Prevention Conference hosted by Florida First Lady Columba Bush on December 4 and 5 in Orlando. Two other Governors' spouses, Mrs. Mickey Hoeven (North Dakota) and Mrs. Michele Ridge also attended the conference and gave strong presentations about the need for all sectors of society to be actively engaged in preventing underage drinking.

The initiative's Second National Conference - The Solution is Within Our Reach: Working Together to Keep Kids Alcohol Free was held January 10-11, 2002, at the Monarch Hotel in Washington, DC. More than 300 participants representing 49 States, Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia attended. The purpose of the conference was to bring together Governors' spouses, alcohol prevention scientists and other prevention experts, practitioners, policy makers, media representatives, State representatives, and other concerned individuals; create networking opportunities across the States; and provide participants with the latest research pertaining to alcohol use by children. Five NIAAA researchers were represented on the program over the two days. Conference highlights included a keynote address given by J. Edward Hill, M.D., Chair-elect of the AMA Board of Trustees and a Fred Friendly Seminar moderated by Jack Ford of ABC News who engaged panelists in addressing prevention of alcohol use by children in a community setting. Acting NIAAA Director Raynard Kington, M.D., Ph.D., presented an overview of the problems associated with alcohol use by children.

Press coverage of the Conference was extensive, both from the national level and from the participating States' Washington news bureaus, and included coverage by ABC Radio Network, Bloomberg Radio, Cox News Service, Univision, Belo News Service, McClatchy News Service, Alaska Public Radio, NPR Boston, and CNN en Espanol. Discussions are still underway with Late Edition and Wolf Blitzer to do a followup in-depth segment (20 minutes) on underage drinking. To portray the important work done by the Governors spouses, the Washington Post carried an ad on January 10, with the heading: "33 Leaders from 33 States with One Goal - Working to show America that Alcohol isn't 'kids stuff.'" Included in the ad were the names of all 33 of the participating spouses, the three Emeritus spouses, and several relevant statistics about adolescent alcohol use. The ad will be repeated twice in the Washington Post - the day after Congress reconvenes and the day after the President's State of the Union address.

A third series of one-page summaries of studies with relevance to early alcohol use, called "Science, Kids, and Alcohol: Research Briefs," is now in preparation. The new series will cover presentations at the January 10-11 Second Annual Leadership conference. Topics covered will be the influence of alcohol portrayal in TV programs and advertising, the alcohol "pipeline" to kids, a survey of public support for stronger youth-related alcohol policies, and the engagement of state legislatures through passage of alcohol policy "study resolutions."

V. OFFICE AND DIVISION ACTIVITIES

OFFICE OF THE DIRECTOR

Acting NIAAA Director Raynard Kington, M.D., Ph.D., participated in a variety of activities associated with the Second National Conference of the National Leadership to Keep Children Alcohol Free including:

• along with Dr. Steve Schroeder, President and CEO, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Charles Curie, Administrator, Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Organization (SAMHSA), Dr. Estus Smith, Vice-President and Chief Operating Officer, Kettering Foundation, joined the First Ladies from Alaska, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Idaho, Montana, North Dakota, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, and Wyoming in a Pre-Conference dinner, Wednesday evening, January 9th;
• participated in a formal Press Conference, during which Dr. Kington presented an overview of what research tells us about the problems associated with alcohol use by children. Subsequent to the Press Conference, Dr. Kington had several interviews, including one with the McClatchy News Service;
• introduced the Thursday luncheon speaker, Dr. Armando Peruga, Regional Advisor for Alcohol, Tobacco and Drugs, World Health Organization (WHO), who represented the WHO Director-General at the conference; and
• hosted a reception for NIAAA-supported researchers who were attending the conference.

Dr. Dufour participated in and gave opening remarks at the National Research Service Award (NRSA)Training Directors' Meeting. Themeeting was held November 30-December 2, 2001 in Indianapolis, Indiana.

As an invited participant, Dr. Dufour represented NIAAA in a National Center for Human Genome Research (NCHGR) Conference entitled, "Beyond the Beginning: The Future of Genomics." At this Conference, which was held December 13-14, 2001 in Airlie, Virginia, Dr. Dufour participated in discussions of technological improvements in genetics research for the next 5-10-20 years.

OFFICE OF COLLABORATIVE RESEARCH

Dr. Faye Calhoun, Director, and Dr. Tina Vanderveen, Deputy Director, Office of Collaborative Research (OCR),planned and participated in a 3-day meeting organized in collaboration with the director and faculty members of the Indiana University Alcohol Research Center. On the first day, NIAAA senior staff met with Research Training Program (T-32) Directors. The discussions focussed on various complex issues associated with directing and administering NIAAA-supported training programs. Intent of the National Research Service Award (NRSA) Program, compliance with NIH policy and procedures, fiscal accountability, timely submission of reports/documents, and accomplishment of goals were among the topics that training directors and NIAAA staff covered during the sessions. Two days were devoted to a scientific conference entitled "ALCOHOLISM: Toward an Integration of Basic and Clinical Research Training for the 21st Century." This event provided an opportunity for junior scientists to present their work to peers and faculty in a supportive and encouraging environment. Thirty-four oral presentations and twenty-three posters comprised the program.

NIAAA co-sponsored the Surgeon General's Conference on Health Disparities and Mental Retardation held December 5-6, 2001 in Washington, D.C. The issue for NIAAA is the early identification of and health care for children affected by prenatal alcohol consumption, and very relevant strategies and recommendations were provided. The final report will be available within a few months. Dr. Calhoun and OCR staff member, Dr. Deidra Roach, represented the Institute at this Conference.

Interagency Coordinating Committee on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (ICCFAS) - An Update

The Report on the ICCFAS: Progress and Five Year Strategic Plan, which includes important accomplishments of the ICCFAS and an outline of its strategic plan, will be sent to Congress and available for distribution in the near future. Key objectives identified in the strategic plan include: 1) improving access to care for alcohol abusing and high risk women of childbearing age, with emphasis on special populations; 2) developing and disseminating national guidelines for the care of children with FAS/FAE; and 3) developing procedures for accurately screening large numbers of children within a primary school or health care setting.

Since its inception in 1996 the ICCFAS has convened 17 times. The Committee met most recently on December 11, 2001 to review results of promising projects and to receive updates on the activities of member agencies. Meeting highlights included the introduction of an FAS resource guide for use by juvenile justice professionals, developed by the Minnesota Organization on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome with support from NIAAA and the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention and a presentation on the expanding role of primary care in the prevention of prenatal exposure to alcohol. The newly established FAS Juvenile Justice Work Group and the Department of Education Work Group on FAS/ARND, sub-committees of the ICCFAS, met on December 11 and 12th.

Dr. Calhoun and Dr. Edward Riley, University of California-San Diego, will co-chair the Steering Committee for the SAMHSA supported FAS Center for Excellence. The first meeting was held on February 1. The FAS Center for Excellence will support some activities which transfer research to practice and provide information and assistance to affected children and their families.

Research on Alcohol and HIV/AIDS

The NIAAA supports a comprehensive program of epidemiological, behavioral and biomedical research within the HIV/AIDS research arena and actively participates in the planning process for the NIH Fiscal Year Plan for HIV-Related Research. The NIAAA also collaborates with the NIH Office of AIDS Research (OAR) and other research institutes and Federal programs relevant to alcohol abuse and HIV/AIDS, providing coordination for Federal alcohol abuse and HIV/AIDS research activities and dissemination of research findings to health care providers, researchers, policymakers, and the public. OCR activities addressing the relationship between alcohol and HIV/AIDS include:

Research on Alcohol and HIV/AIDS (PA-02-039; Application receipt date: January 23, 2002). Through this Program Announcement (PA), NIAAA is seeking to support research to identify and characterize the role of alcohol, drinking behaviors, and drinking environments in the epidemiology and natural history, pathogenesis, prevention, treatment and control of HIV/AIDS by encouraging multi-disciplinary, interdisciplinary, and collaborative studies that focus on a range of epidemiologic and intervention issues within HIV and alcohol. This PA advances research goals set forth in the NIH Fiscal Year 2002 Plan for HIV-Related Research.

Developing Alcohol-Related HIV Preventive Interventions (RFA-AA-02-003; Application Receipt Date: January 23, 2002.) NIAAA is seeking to stimulate the design, development, and testing of alcohol-related HIV preventive interventions that have the potential for reducing the risk of transmission of HIV in alcohol using, abusing, and dependent populations. This RFA is responsive to a proposed HIV Prevention Science Initiative by the OAR that seeks to stimulate further research on the impact of "early identification (of HIV infection), counseling, and other behavioral interventions, and HIV treatment on risk behaviors, the utilization of HIV prevention services, and the transmission of HIV." The focus of this priority area is on intervening to change alcohol-related behavior of HIV-infected individuals as it relates to further transmission of HIV between individuals and diminished health outcomes among those infected. Investigators are encouraged to move beyond basic behavioral studies to implement a continuum (from efficacy to effectiveness) of substance use risk- reduction interventions in populations at risk for both alcohol problems and HIV infection.

Veterans Aging Cohort Study (VACS 5) Beginning in FY 2002, NIAAA will provide funding for a 5-year prospective study on the role of alcohol use and abuse in determining patient outcomes for aging veterans with and without HIV infection. The study is an expansion of the ongoing Veterans Aging Cohort Study (VACS), initiated in1999 and supported by a number of NIH components including the National Institute on Aging (NIA), the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), and the OAR, and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The NIAAA study will assess the role of alcohol use in patients' quality of life and risk for morbidity and mortality, and the extent to which alcohol effects are influenced by HIV infection treatment. Results will be used to develop tailored interventions for veterans and non-veterans who are infected with HIV and use alcohol.

NIAAA research support totaling more than $8 million over five years will go to the University of Pittsburgh and the Pittsburgh Veterans Administration Medical Center and five additional VA study sites. Principal investigator Amy Justice, M.D., Ph.D., and co-principal investigator Joseph Conigliaro, M.D., M.P.H., both of the University of Pittsburgh and the Pittsburgh VA, will lead the study of approximately 2,000 HIV-infected veterans and 2,000 HIV-uninfected matched controls from VA facilities in Manhattan/Brooklyn, New York; Bronx, New York; Atlanta, Georgia; Los Angeles, California; and Houston, Texas. Substantial funding for the NIAAA study is provided by the OAR and NIA.

OCR staff are participating in the VACS5 start-up meeting in Pittsburgh, February 6-7. The purpose of the meeting is to evaluate results of the five site feasibility study and to conduct a detailed review of the protocol for the new study. Participants will also discuss the feasibility of expanding the study to include two additional sites.

Coordination of NIAAA Health Disparities Strategic Plan

The latest Health Disparities Strategic Plan, submitted to the National Center on Minority Health and Health Disparities (NCMHD) in November 2001, includes Specific Action Plans for FY2002-FY2006, Time Tables for each action plan, proposed Budgets through FY2006 and proposed metrics for Progress Measures and Outcome Measures. The action Plans cover three broad areas: research, capacity and infrastructure development, and outreach and information dissemination. The report will be available for distribution after approval by the NCMHD.

Malt Liquor Research

As the result of an RFA one year ago, NIAAA now funds eight exploratory/ developmental grants (R21) for research on high alcohol content malt beverages and related products. These grants cover a variety of topics ranging from pharmacokinetics to advertising, many of which also include issues related to alcohol health disparities.

RFA for Alcohol Related Health Disparities (RFA AA02-002)

The response to this RFA was impressive and includes applications for regular research grants, exploratory/developmental grants (R21) and educational grants (R25). Topics appear to cover all areas of the NIAAA Health Disparities Strategic Plan.

International and Health Education Programs Branch

National Alcohol Screening Day (NASD)

NIAAA, with partial funding from the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT) and the Center for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP), provides support for the continued development, implementation, and evaluation of National Alcohol Screening Day. This program focuses national and local attention on a select day in April each year where free anonymous screening and referral for alcohol abuse and addiction, and public education about the medical consequences of high risk alcohol use, are offered. This year's NASD is on April 11.

The International and Health Education Programs Branch is responsible for the administering the NASD cooperative agreement. Branch staff, Peggy Murray and Dr. Anton Bizzell are significantly involved in developing and monitoring NASD activities including the training of site coordinators. The following NASD-related activities have taken place since September:

• Coordinator Training for Chicago area sites (December 2001).
• An NIAAA-sponsored breakfast at the annual meeting of the Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America (CADCA) to recruit sites and provide training.
• Coordinator Training for Washington D.C. area sites(January 2002).
• Training for Department of Defense sites organized by National Advisory Council Ex-Officio Member Dr. Roger Hartman (January 2002). This training was attended by representatives from all four branches of military service.

Social Work Education Model

To increase the research-based knowledge of social workers in all areas of practice, including direct work with alcohol patients, NIAAA is developing a faculty development initiative to prepare faculty in Schools of Social work to teach their students about alcohol problems. "Social Work Education for the Prevention and Treatment of Alcohol Use Disorders," a one and one half-day training session developed by Peggy Murray and Isabel Ellis, was held in November 2001 in Washington, DC. This course was taught by social work faculty from the University of Wisconsin (Milwaukee), the University of Texas, the University of Washington, and NIAAA. It focused on the early identification, assessment, intervention, and prevention of alcohol problems in client populations. Participants included faculty from schools of social work in Maryland, Virginia, the District of Columbia, Pennsylvania, North Carolina, and Indiana.

South Africa

Peggy Murray led a team of medical school faculty from the United States to Bloemfontein, South Africa September 9-15 to conduct a course on identifying and treating alcohol-use disorders in primary care settings. Professor ST Rataemane, University of the Free State organized this course. Course participants were faculty from medical and nursing schools that represented every province of South Africa. U.S. experts included Henrietta Barnes, M.D., Harvard University School of Medicine (Course director); Jeffery Samet, M.D., M.P.H., Boston University School of Medicine; Karlon Johnson, M.D., Charles R. Drew School of Medicine; Lorena Siqueira, M.D., Mount Sinai School of Medicine; and Karen Starr, MSN, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine.

Spain

Dr. Calhoun and Dr. Kenneth R. Warren, Director of the Office of Scientific Affairs, provided leadership in the development of a meeting to assess progress, identify needed studies, and foster increased international collaborative research on fetal alcohol syndrome (FAS). Two prominent investigators in FAS research, Dr. Ed Riley from San Diego State University, and Dr. Consuelo Guerri from Valencia, Spain, served as the co-chairs of the meeting that was held September 9 through 13, 2001 in Valencia. The meeting was hosted and supported in part by the Direccion General de Drodadependenias, Generalitat Valenciana. Workshop attendees were researchers from Africa, South America, the United States and several European countries including Spain, Germany, Sweden, Finland, Russia, and Turkey. These investigators were either currently involved in international collaborative research or were identified as having the potential to contribute to such efforts. An earlier workshop designed to foster collaboration between U.S. and European FAS investigators had been held in France in 1996 under the sponsorship of a private foundation. The workshop in Valencia continued the efforts initiated in the 1996 meeting and broadened the range of collaborations by including African and South American investigators.

OFFICE OF POLICY, LEGISLATION, AND PUBLIC LIAISON

Seasonal Outreach Series

Under the direction of Fred Donodeo, OPPL developed and distributed the first installment in its Seasonal Outreach series. The two-page fact sheet focused on myths about New Years Eve drinking and the casualties that are linked with this holiday. It contained statistics from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), a full-color infograph which graphically displayed statistical and scientific commentary in lay language, correcting many of the myths and misconceptions about drinking and the human reaction to alcohol. The fact sheet was distributed through NIAAA Constituency groups, public relations newswires, and the NIAAA and WTOP Newsradio Web pages. Among other news reports of this activity, Division of Basic Research Director, Dr. Sam Zakhari, was interviewed by AM Omaha, a Nebraska morning radio show. Upcoming installments in this series will focus on prom season and the Fourth of July.

Constituency Activities

Council Liaison Representative Organizations

OPPL is responsible for liaison activities as they relate to Council meetings (and associated "liaison group meetings"). Currently, over 500 outside groups comprise our contact list, and we share information with these groups on a regular basis. Liaison representatives meet informally with the NIAAA Director and senior staff following the adjournment of Council meetings.

Collaborations with Outside Organizations

In addition to the broad range of informal collaborative activities and contacts between the Institute and its constituent organizations, NIAAA implements an annual plan of specific, formal collaborations with outside groups. Examples of recent and future collaborations include:

December 2001

Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America: As in past years, NIAAA cosponsored the National Leadership Forum XII convened by the Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America (CADCA). This year's theme was "Coalitions: Linking Science, Practice and Spirit...to Build Healthy Communities". Enoch Gordis, M.D. gave his final CADCA address as the Director of NIAAA before approximately 2,000 community representatives. During the three-day event, NIAAA sponsored workshops on media and the prevention of alcohol use and abuse among youth, alcohol prevention policy and interventions, and early interventions with "high risk" youth who use alcohol.

American Academy of Addiction Psychiatry: NIAAA again assisted the AAAP through support of addiction psychiatry residents' attendance at their annual meeting.

January 2002

National Association of State Alcohol and Drug Abuse Directors (NASADAD): NIAAA has been collaborating with NASADAD to communicate alcohol research findings and implications to State Alcohol and Drug Abuse Directors. NASADAD members, the Single State Agencies (SSAs), are responsible for certifying professionals, accrediting treatment programs, contracting with community based providers, collecting and analyzing data, assuring quality services, and establishing performance and outcome measures. Four Issue Briefs will present the most up to date research available to assist these individuals in fulfilling their responsibilities to provide a broad range of alcohol and drug prevention and treatment services throughout their states and communities. The first Issue Brief focuses on the use of medications as a component of alcohol treatment and its implications for state alcohol treatment systems. The second Brief will address screenings and brief interventions and discuss their cost effectiveness.

February 2002

Delaware Research Symposium: NIAAA will sponsor a full-day research-to-practice symposium on the campus of the University of Delaware for the Delaware Health and Social Services and DC/Delaware Addiction Technology Transfer Center (ATTC). This workshop, titled "Harnessing Science to Transform Lives: Act I-Alcoholism" will focus on the use of medications as part of a balanced approach to alcoholism treatment and address research implications and their potential applications in clinical settings. Counselors, social workers, and other providers are invited to attend. The agenda will include presentations by researchers, Betsy McCaul, Ph.D. and Carlton Erickson, Ph.D.; clinician, Peter Hayden, M.S.; and dramatist Julie Russell, RN, MA.

Ongoing "Research To Practice" Efforts

New York Collaboration, Phase II

A report summarizing NIAAA's work with the New York State Office of Substance Abuse Services, the Association of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Providers of New York, and the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT) to complete phase II of this project is available on the NIAAA Website at https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20080916102850/http://www.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/newyork.PDF. The report was prepared by DCPR staff member, Dr. Michael Hilton.

North Carolina Collaboration, Phase II

As with the New York State project, NIAAA and CSAT are moving ahead, in conjunction with our North Carolina colleagues, to phase II of the research to practice effort. A process similar to that which was used in New York has been implemented in the state, and the residence visits and other activities are happening. A report on the North Carolina experience will be ready later this year.

Media Activities

Since August 2001, NIAAA has issued the following news releases and advisories:

Alcohol Researchers Show "Friendly" Virus Slows HIV Cell Growth, issued September 5, 2001, highlighted the work of Jack Stapleton, M.D., Department of Internal Medicine, University of Iowa College of Medicine and Iowa City Veterans Affairs Medical Center published in the September 6, 2001 New England Journal of Medicine (Volume 345). Dr. Stapleton and his colleagues found that the GB virus type C (GBV-C, formerly known as Hepatitis G) retarded progression of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in a 12-year clinical study of HIV patients. Jinhua Xiang, M.D., and Sabina Wunschmann, Ph.D., in Dr. Stapleton's laboratory demonstrated in an accompanying laboratory study that GBV-C grows in CD-4 positive "helper" T-cells and that cells infected with both HIV and GBV-C produced 30 to 40 percent less HIV than those infected with HIV only. It may be reasonable to consider using GBV-C as a novel therapeutic vector to delay HIV progression, the researchers concluded. They are now working to understand precisely how GBV-C inhibits HIV progression. The news release generated substantial national and international attention.

Gene Therapy Technique Reduces Alcohol Consumption in Rats, issued September 13, 2001, highlighted the work of Panayotis Thanos, Ph.D., Nora Volkow, Ph.D., and colleagues of the Brookhaven National Laboratory. The researchers used gene therapy techniques to increase levels of dopamine D2 (DRD2) receptors and reduce drinking in rats previously trained to self-administer alcohol. The researchers used an inactivated virus as a vector to carry copies of the DRD2 gene to the rat nucleus accumbens, associated with alcohol reinforcement, and measured drinking behavior at different time points following the gene injection. Both high- and low-alcohol-preference rats showed significant drop in alcohol intake, with gene-injected high-preference rats consuming 64 percent less than placebo-injected rats. Although the effect was transient, repeating the experiment produced the same dramatic effects. The researchers are now working to develop an improved gene-delivery system that may prolong the effect. In the aftermath of September 11, this story received little press attention at the time of release. However, Science and New Scientist magazine reported the story subsequently. NIAAA News Releases and Advisories are available at https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20080916102850/http://www.niaaa.nih.gov/ press/press.htm.

OFFICE OF SCIENTIFIC AFFAIRS

Extramural Project Review Branch

For this review round, Extramural Project Review Branch Staff completed 13 review meetings to evaluate a total of 85 grant applications, and one contract review meeting. Reviews completed include the following:

PA00-103	NRSA Institutional Training Grants	12 grant applications reviewed
RFP No. AA01-04	National Alcohol Research Education Program	1 contract meeting

The remaining 70 grant applications were not submitted in response to any special initiatives and therefore were reviewed in the Institute's standing review sub-committees, or special emphasis panels.

Review committees with the NIH Center for Scientific Review (CSR) evaluated 127 research grant applications over the course of this review round.

Special Review Committees are presently being established for the evaluation of applications received in response to the following initiatives:

AA00-003	Alcohol Research Centers
AA02-001	Alcohol-related problems among college students: epidemiology and prevention
AA02-002	Research on alcohol health disparities
AA02-003	Developing alcohol-related HIV preventive interventions
AA02-004	New Approaches to Developing Pharmacotherapy for Alcoholism
AA02-005	Medications to clinically treat alcohol dependence and alcohol-related diseases
AA02-006	Nonhuman primate models of neurobiological mechanisms of adolescent alcohol abuse
AA02-007	Mutant mouse phenotyping: ethanol-related behavior and nervous system function
AA02-008	Effects of alcohol on HIV invasion across the blood-brain barrier or placental barrier
AA02-009	Integrative Neuroscience Initiative on Alcoholism (INIA)
AA02-010	Stem cells in alcohol research
AA02-011	Role of S-adenosyl-L-methionine (SAMe) in the treatment of alcoholic liver disease

The outcome of these evaluations will be presented at future council meetings.

Planning and Evaluation Branch

NIAAA Advanced Research Program

There has been significant activity in the NIAAA Advanced Research Program, which is administratively patterned after the strategy used by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA).

The Broad Agency Announcement for the "Integrated Alcohol Sensing and Data Analysis System" was released on January 7, 2002. This solicitation is designed to develop an innovative alcohol biosensor providing a revolutionary advance in the ability to obtain valid and reliable dynamic information on an individual's consumption of alcohol in daily life. A key innovative concept to be applied is the fully integrated sensing and processing of the resulting data, an approach offering the potential to succeed where others have fallen short. The anticipated result of this program is the capability to gather and analyze data at the required resolution and finesse for a great variety of experimental and analytic studies of alcohol-related phenomena, such as sensitization, acute tolerance, chronic tolerance, dependence, withdrawal, craving and relapse. Fundamental information on the time-varying distribution of alcohol throughout various organs may also prove useful in studies of the disposition and elimination of alcohol in the body. The capabilities envisioned may enable exciting applications such as the evaluation of clinical interventions and the development of relapse prevention programs. It is anticipated that approximately $3 million will be invested in this program in FY 2002. Dr. Dennis Healy, former DARPA Project Manager, is the Project Manager.

Dr. Carlos Castillo-Chavez from Cornell University has agreed to be the Project Manager for a new and innovative geospatial initiative. This new approach will use sophisticated mathematical techniques to understand ecological, spatial, and risk factors associated with alcohol-related behavior and consequences. It is anticipated that a workshop will be held in FY 2002 and a Broad Agency Announcement will be released in FY 2003.

Dr. Allen Tannenbaum from Georgia Tech organized a workshop to discuss theoretical and computational techniques applicable to identifying neural circuits during the performance of cognitive and reward-related tasks in children (ages 10-12) at risk for developing alcohol-related problems. A number of novel, high-risk approaches were suggested. Dr. Tannenbaum has agreed to act as an interim Project Manager until a permanent Project Manager is recruited. The workshop was held September 10-11, 2001 in Bethesda, MD.

Planning Initiatives

A number of need assessment and planning initiatives are underway. These formal planning exercises are related to goals described in the NIAAA Strategic Plan 2001-2005 and are conducted in collaboration with program staff.

Medication Development

The following workshops have been scheduled: Preclinical Workshop on March 14; Proteomics on March 15; and a Clinical Workshop on March 21.

Gene-Environment Interactions

A workshop on environmental influences on genetics related to the development and progression of alcohol-related disorders is being planned for May 2002.

Alcohol and Violence

NIAAA staff are using the results of recent NIAAA-sponsored workshops and Research Monographs on this subject, along with an assessment of the current NIAAA research portfolio, to develop a formal planning document.

Scientific Communications Branch

Alcohol Research & Health

Since September, two issues of AR&H have been printed and disseminated: "Chronobiology: Circadian Rhythms and Alcohol Use," and "Alcohol-Related Birth Defects: An Update." The issue on alcohol and disease interactions has been sent to the printers. Work continues on issues focusing on prevention, women, and epidemiology.

Alcohol Research & Health, NIAAA's quarterly, peer-reviewed journal, is available from the Government Printing Office at a subscription rate of $20 per year. Further information on subscribing may be obtained by contacting the Scientific Communications Branch at 301/443-3860. The full text of all AR&H issues dating back to 1996 is available on NIAAA's Website and can be accessed at https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20080916102850/http://www.niaaa.nih.gov.

Alcohol Alert

Two issues of Alcohol Alert have been printed and disseminated:

"Cognitive Impairment and Recovery from Alcoholism"

"Craving Research: Implications for Treatment."

The next issue will be an update on alcohol and minorities.

The quarterly bulletin is available free of charge. For information on obtaining copies of this and other NIAAA publications, contact the Scientific Communications Branch at 301/443-3860. Full text of all 54 Alerts are available on NIAAA's Website at https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20080916102850/http://www.niaaa.nih.gov .

Other Materials

Public Service Announcements (PSAs)

The underage drinking PSAs jointly produced by NIAAA and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) have received nearly $1,000,000 in free advertising through the Office of National Drug Control Policy National Media Campaign Pro-Bono program. In December we received a letter from the Advertising Council informing us that the underage drinking PSAs have been re-included in the Pro-Bono program for the next three months. In addition, media kits containing the PSAs and print materials were sent to the top 100 media outlets in the country. Other dissemination activities included working with a number of organizations such as the National Association for Children of Alcoholics (NACOA), the National Council on Alcohol and Drug Dependence (NCADD), the Community Anti-Drug Coalitions of America (CADCA), Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), and the National Leadership to Keep Children Alcohol Free (Governors' spouses). For MADD, we added their logo at the end of the PSAs which will be made available to the 600 MADD chapters across the country. For the Governors' spouses, we provided customized taglines for use in their respective States.

FAQs

The public education brochure, Frequently Asked Questions, has been printed and disseminated. Work has been completed on adapting the text for Hispanic audiences; the design and layout are being finalized.

Women and Alcohol Video

A 12-minute video on women and alcohol, produced by NIAAA and the NIH Office of Research on Women's Health, has been completed. The video includes first-person accounts of women of various ages and ethnic groups who are in recovery, with on-screen information on the prevalence and effects of alcohol problems. Focus groups were conducted in Baltimore and Kansas City. A draft of a parallel booklet has also been completed.

Physician's Guide

A contract has been awarded to Eagle Design and Management, Inc., for design and other work related to the revision of the Physician's Guide to Helping Patients with Alcohol Problems. Preliminary designs have been reviewed by NIAAA and are now being refined for use in evaluations with health care practitioners. Other activities to be accomplished by this contract include designing the accompanying patient brochure, How to Cut Down on Your Drinking, holding focus groups to test the prototypes, printing both publications (in both English and Spanish for the patient brochure), and creating web versions of both publications.

Prevention Poster

A poster targeting underage drinking, developed by NIAAA in partnership with the Center for Substance Abuse Prevention, has been completed and is being printed. The poster depicts a vending machine containing fun-filled items such as a football, camera, skates, and the like with the caption, "With so many things to do, no wonder most kids choose not to drink."

DIVISION OF BASIC RESEARCH

Workshops

Dr. Dennis A. Twombly represented NIAAA at the Society for Neuroscience training workshop entitled, "Meeting on Training Opportunities-NIH and NSF Funding for Your Research Training", November 12, 2001. This workshop provided an overview of training opportunities and funding mechanisms offered by NIH and the National Science Foundation. Breakout sessions featured representatives of NIH Institutes with neuroscience-related programs The workshop was organized for the benefit of graduate students, medical students, postdoctoral fellows, and young investigators in the neurosciences

Drs. Sam Zakhari, Neuhold, Laurie Foudin, Robrt Karp, Denise Russo, and Antonio Noronha organized a workshop, "Potential Use of Stem Cells in Alcohol-Related Conditions." The workshop, which was held December 7, 2001 in Bethesda, Maryland, included twelve speakers who focused on applications of stem cells in brain and liver. Dr. Russo and Dr. Noronha chaired the sessions and Dr. Zakhari gave a presentation entitled "Why Alcohol, Why Stem Cells, Why Now?."

Symposium

Drs. Noronha and Karp organized a Satellite Symposium entitled "Neurogenetics of Alcoholism," held in conjunction with the Society for Neuroscience 31st Annual meeting in San Diego, California, November 10, 2001. The purpose of this Symposium was to illustrate how genetic analyses have contributed to our understanding of the mechanisms of alcohol's effects on nervous system function and behavior. The symposium featured presentations covering the full range of NIAAA-supported genetic research, from invertebrates to humans. The Symposium sessions were chaired by Drs. Neuhold and Antonio.

New Requests for Applications (RFA)/Program Announcements (PA)

RFA AA-02-006 "Nonhuman Primate Models of Adolescent Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism" issued October 4, 2001. This RFA solicits interdisciplinary research to study the neurobiological mechanisms and consequences of alcohol abuse and alcoholism during late childhood through adolescence using non-human primate models. The intent is to encourage investigators with expertise in primate developmental biology and behavior to work with established alcohol researchers to elucidate the neurobiological mechanisms of adolescent alcohol abuse and alcoholism.

Contact:  Dr. Ellen Witt
               301-443-6545
               ewitt@willco.niaaa.nih.gov.

RFA-AA-02-007 "Mutant Mouse Phenotyping: Ethanol-Related Behavior and Nervous System Function" issued December 17, 2001. This RFA solicits applications that use chemical mutagenesis to generate large numbers of mouse mutants that will be screened for alcohol-related phenotypes. The overall goal is to identify pedigrees and ultimately the underlying genes that mediate particular behavioral and physiological responses to ethanol or are involved in predisposing an individual to consume ethanol.

Contact:  Dr. Lisa A. Neuhold
               301-594-6228
               LNeuhold@willco.niaaa.nih.gov

RFA-AA-02-004 "New Approaches to Developing Pharmacotherapy for Alcoholism" issued Sep 27, 2001. This announcement solicits applications from a spectrum of basic research approaches including chemistry, genetics, molecular pharmacology and animal and human behavioral pharmacology. The RFAa's goals are to synthesize and screen new compounds; to test the potential therapeutic efficacy of existing compounds in experimental models; to develop new laboratory models with animal and human subjects having high predictive validity for specific clinical problems associated with alcohol abuse; and to research the mechanisms of action of existing drugs and combinations of drugs currently believed to be effective in treating facets of alcohol abuse.

Contact:  Dr. Mark Egli
               301-594-6382
               Megli@willco.niaaa.nih.gov.

Staff Activities

Dr. Diane Lucas was an invited speaker at the VA Hepatitis C Research Symposium, which was held October 1-2, 2001, in Leesburg, Virginia. Her presentation described the Institute's ongoing research programs in alcoholism and viral hepatitis and outlined future research directions

Dr. Zakhari co-organized, together with Drs. Christopher Stubbs and Raphael Rubin of Thomas Jefferson University, a three-day workshop on "Molecular Mechanisms of Alcohol and Anesthetic Action" which was held in Philadelphia on October 4-7, 2001. He also chaired a session during the meeting.

Dr. Zakhari gave interviews to WTOP and KKAR radio stations on New Year's eve about drinking, hangover, and other alcohol topics related to the Holiday.

Dr. Zakhari attended and participated in a training workshop for young investigators held in Indiana on November 30 to December 2, 2001 at Indiana University, Indianapolis.

Dr. Neuhold participated in the NIH Mammalian Gene Collection Steering Committee meeting to discuss generating a bank of full-length cDNA clones and their sequences as well as tissue-specific libraries on December 17, 2001, in Rockville, Maryland.

On January 6, 2002, Dr. Neuhold participated in the Trans-NIH Mouse Genomic and Genetics meeting to discuss the need to generate mouse SNPs and databases, sharing mouse resources generated with NIH grant support and the mutagenesis consortium.

On December 18-19, 2001, as NIAAA representative to the Trans-NIH Sleep Coordinating Committee, Dr. Ellen Witt participated in a meeting of the Task Force appointed to revise the National Sleep Disorders Research Plan. This is a 5-year plan for sleep research priorities at NIH.

Dr. Russo was recently appointed to the Digestive Sciences IRG Steering Committee. The committee is involved in the reorganization of the Digestive Science Study Sections at the Center for Scientific Review, NIH. Study sections which currently review alcohol-related grant applications will be affected.

Dr. Russo was recently appointed the Institute liaison for the Trans-NIH Committee on Xenotransplantation. She attended the third annual meeting of the Secretary's Advisory Committee on Xenotransplantation (SACX), which was held November 29-30, 2001, at Columbia, Maryland.

Publications

Warren, K.R., Foudin, L.L., Alcohol-related birth defects-the past, present, and future. Alcohol Research & Health 25(3):153-158, 2001.

Thornberry, J.; Bhaskar, B.; Krulewitch, C.J.; Wesley, B.; Hubbard, M.L.; Das, A.; Foudin, L.; Adamson, M. Audio, computer-assisted self interview (A-CASI) with touch screen to detect alcohol consumption in pregnant women: application of a new technology to an old problem. Computers in Nursing, 2002 (in press).

DIVISION OF BIOMETRY AND EPIDEMIOLOGY

New Program Announcement (PA)

PA 01-140 "Secondary Analysis of Existing Alcohol Epidemiology Data Sets" issued September 25, 2001. This program announcement encourages applications for studies that more fully utilize currently available data sets to increase our understanding of the incidence, prevalence and etiology of alcohol-related problems and disorders in the population, as well as the risk and protective factors associated with them. Data used in secondary analyses may be obtained from current or past investigator-initiated research activities or from other public or private sources. Specific areas of research encouraged by the PA include: studying patterns of alcohol consumption and the distribution of alcohol-related problems in the population as a whole and in specific subpopulations; studying risk and protective factors for alcohol-related problems in the population as a whole and in specific subpopulations; elucidating disparities among racial/ethnic groups with respect to alcohol consumption and alcohol-related problems; and understanding the natural history, course, and short- and long-term outcomes of alcohol consumption.

Contact:   Dr. Vivian Faden
                Epidemiology Branch
                Division of Biometry and Epidemiology
                301-594-6232
                vfaden@willco.niaaa.nih.gov

Alcohol Epidemiologic Data System (AEDS)

New Surveillance Reports

Three new surveillance reports have been developed by AEDS and Division staff and placed on NIAAA's Website. These reports are:

Surveillance Report #56: Trends in Alcohol-Related Fatal Traffic Crashes, United States, 1977-99. Yi, H.; Williams, G.D.; and Dufour, M.C.

Surveillance Report #57: Liver Cirrhosis Mortality in the United States, 1970-98. Yoon, Y.H.; Yi, H.; Grant, B.F.; and Dufour, M.C

Surveillance Report #58: Trends in Alcohol-Related Morbidity among Short-Term Community Hospital Discharges, United States, 1979-99. Whitmore, C.C.; Yi, H.; and Dufour, M.C.

Alcohol Epidemiologic Data Directory

AEDS staff have also developed the 2001 Alcohol Epidemiologic Data Directory. This directory, which is available on NIAAA's Website (https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20080916102850/http://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/datasys.htm) and updated annually, is a descriptive listing of alcohol-related epidemiologic data sets (most of them national in scope) which are available to researchers.

Publications

Grant, Bridget F., Stinson, Frederick S., and Harford, Thomas C. Age at Onset of Alcohol Use and DSM-IV Alcohol Abuse and Dependence: A Twelve-Year Follow-up. Journal of Substance Abuse (in press).

Grant, Bridget F., Stinson, Frederick S., and Harford, Thomas C. The Five Year Course of Alcohol Abuse Among Young Adults. Journal of Substance Abuse (in press).

Hanna, E.Z., Yi, H., Dufour, M.C., Whitmore, C.C. The relationship of early onset regular smoking to alcohol use, depression, illegal drug use and other risky behaviors during early adolescence: Results from the youth supplement to the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANESIII). Journal of Substance Abuse 2001; 13:265-282.

Smothers, B. and Bertolucci, D. Alcohol consumption and health-promoting behavior in a U.S. household sample: Leisure-time physical activity. Journal of Studies on Alcohol 2001; 62:467-476.

Spies, C.D., Sander, M., Stangl, K., Fernandez-Sola, J., Preedy, V.R., Rubin ,E., Andreasson, S., Hanna, E.Z. and Kox, W.J. Effects of alcohol on the heart. Current Opinion in Critical Care 2001; 7:337-343.

DIVISION OF CLINICAL AND PREVENTION RESEARCH

Office of the Director

Presentations

Division Director, Dr. Richard Fuller, gave a lecture entitled "Alcoholism: An update," at Family Practice and Psychiatry Grand Rounds at the Maine Medical Center, Portland, Maine, November 27, 2001.

Publication

Fuller RK, Gordis E. Naltrexone treatment for alcohol dependence. New England Journal of Medicine 345(24):1770-1771., 2001.

Treatment Research Branch

Workshop on Measuring Alcohol Treatment Efficacy

TRB sponsored a working conference on evaluating outcome in alcoholism treatment trials on December 3 and 4, 2001.  The meeting was co-chaired by Dr. Richard Fuller and TRB Consultant, Dr. John Allen. Invited papers were presented by subject matter experts on various domains of outcome assessment and included comments on available measures.  Additionally, presentations were given on broad methodological/statistical issues.  Lectures were followed by formal discussant comments as well as perspectives of conference participants.  NIAAA-supported researcher, Dr. Richard Longabaugh, offered summary, integrative comments on the presentations. Broad consensus formed around sentinel measures to be recommended for inclusion in clinical trials to allow better cross-study comparison of findings.

New RFAs/PAs

Medications Development

RFA-AA-02-005 "Medications to Treat Alcohol Dependence and Alcohol-Related Diseases" issued October 1, 2001. The application receipt date is February 13, 2002. Investigations are needed on pharmacological agents that prevent or reduce alcohol intake by decreasing the alcohol craving/urge to drink and/or alleviating the negative symptoms associated with drinking (e.g., protracted withdrawal syndrome). Evaluations of pharmacological agents to clinically treat alcohol-induced diseases, such as alcoholic liver diseases, are also encouraged. In addition, applications can include the use of human laboratory paradigms to screen potential medications for subsequent Phase 2 and Phase 3 trials. All applications submitted in response to this RFA should be conducted in humans.

Contact:  Dr. Joanne Fertig
               301-443-0635
               jfertig@willco.niaaa.nih.gov

Behavioral Therapies

TRB has released two new program announcements on behavioral interventions to treat alcoholism.

PA-02-007 "Mechanisms of Action of Behavioral Treatments for Alcoholism" released on October 4, 2001. Research topics to be investigated under this PA include: the identification and evaluation of factors that mediate and moderate treatment efficacy, elucidation of causal chains underlying treatment effects, clarification of the additive and subtractive effects of complex therapies, and identification of the biological basis underlying the effectiveness of behavioral therapies.

Contact:  Dr. Margaret Mattson
               301-443-0638
               mmattson@willco.niaaa.nih.gov

PA-02-012 "Advancement of Behavioral Therapies for Alcoholism Treatment" released on October 11, 2001. The purpose of this PA is to improve the overall effectiveness of behavioral interventions in alcoholism treatment across various populations of alcohol dependent and abuse subjects. Several research areas have been identified including developing new innovative therapies; creating or refining behavioral techniques for engaging, and retaining patients, and patient adherence to treatment; developing therapies to manage precipitants of relapse; investigating behavioral therapies in group settings; exploring optimal combinations and sequencing of behavioral and pharmacological treatments; and developing effective behavioral interventions for special populations of alcohol dependent/abuse patients including those suffering from concurrent psychiatric disorders, individuals in the criminal justice system, professional health care personnel, the elderly, and minorities.

Contact:  Dr. Cherry Lowman
               301-443-0637
               clowman@willco.niaaa.nih.gov

Project COMBINE

The goal of Project Combine is to identify optimal combinations of pharmacologic and behavioral interventions for the treatment of alcoholism. The pharmacologic agents being studied are naltrexone and acamprosate, both alone and in combination. The two behavioral therapies are Medication Management (MM), a brief intervention designed to enhance compliance to medication and encourage drinking cessation, and Combined Behavioral Intervention (CBI), a moderate intensity intervention combining elements from cognitive behavioral therapy, motivational enhancement therapy, and Alcoholics Anonymous.

Following two safety and feasibility pilot studies, the main trial began enrolling patients in February 2001. As of January 13, 2002, 545 patients have been enrolled. Of these, 32% are females and 23% are minorities. The Data Safety and Monitoring Board met November 6, 2002. No major concerns were noted in the data, and the Board unanimously recommended continuation of the trial. Two manuscripts have been prepared and will be submitted for publication, one on the rationale and methodology of the trial, and the other on the first pilot study reporting the safety and tolerability of the combined drug regimen. Another manuscript on the second pilot study, dealing with compliance and feasibility, is almost complete.

Presentations

Two TRB staff, Dr. Raye Litten and Dr. Joanne Fertig participated in the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) State of the Art in Addiction Medicine Conference: From Molecules to Managed Care. Dr. Litten presented a talk entitled, "Development of Medications to Treat Alcoholism" and Dr. Fertig organized and chaired a session entitled "Alcohol and Nicotine." The Conference was held November 1-3, 2001 in Washington, D.C.

On November 29, 2001, Dr. Litten presented a talk entitled, "Medications Development for Alcoholism Treatment," at Hampton University in Hampton, Virginia.

Publications

Litten, R. Z. (2001). Medications to treat alcohol dependence and abuse: Research shows progress in identifying and developing new agents. FrontLines (December): 4.

Longabaugh, R. and Wirtz, P. (2001). Project MATCH Hypotheses: Results and Causal Chain Analyses. Volume 8: Project MATCH Monograph series (M.E. Mattson, Project MATCH Monograph Series Editor), DHHS Pub. No.(NIH) 01-4238.

Prevention Research Branch

New RFAs

Epidemiology and Prevention

RFA-AA-02-001, "Alcohol-Related Problems Among College Students: Epidemiology and Prevention," developed jointly by the Prevention Research Branch and the Division of Biometry and Epidemiology Epidemiology Research Branch, was published October 1, 2001. The receipt date for this RFA is February 19, 2002. NIAAA has committed $ 4 million to this RFA which will be divided between the two branches. The prevention segment of the RFA encourages applications to develop and test environmental interventions to reduce underage drinking and alcohol-related problems on college campuses. Environmental interventions include, but are not limited to, campus and community policies and practices that restrict alcohol availability, campus disciplinary practices, changes in the academic environment, housing policies and characteristics, campus wide alcohol norms, enforcement of alcohol-related laws and ordinances, and campus policies directed toward high-risk groups.

Contacts:

Dr. Gayle Boyd Prevention Research Branch Division of Clinical and Prevention Research 301-443-8766 gboyd@willco.niaaa.nih.gov

Dr. Vivian Faden Epidemiology Branch Division of Biometry and Epidemiology 301-594-6323 vfaden@willco.niaaa.nih.gov

Liaison Activities

On October 5, 2001, in Washington D.C., Dr. Jan Howard participated in a Roundtable on Shared and Unique Perspectives [Concerning] Evidence-Based Prevention Practices. The all-day discussion by selected extramural researchers and program administrators (including NIH staff) was organized by the Society for Prevention Research through a contract with the Center for Mental Health Services (CMHS) of SAMHSA. The purpose described in the contract is to engage key organizations or agencies in a process to promote a national discussion regarding the standards for identifying evidence-based programs or policies. The final report by the Society for Prevention Research will summarize findings from the Roundtable and from the working paper that was prepared to guide the discussion.

On October 22, 2001, Dr. Howard and Dr. Kathy Salaita met with Dr. Paul Brounstein, Director of the Division of Knowledge Development and Evaluation at CSAP, other CSAP staff, and researchers supported by both NIAAA and CSAP to discuss community-based prevention research projects that focus on the border between the United States and Mexico.

On November 7, 2001, in Rockville, Maryland, Dr. Howard and Dr. Gayle Boyd, as well as other NIAAA staff, met with national and local representatives from Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) to discuss a prevention-focused curriculum for elementary-school students that MADD has developed and implemented. Participants in the meeting explored options for studying and evaluating the effectiveness of MADD's curriculum and how it might be improved prior to such an assessment. The intervention is unique in that it targets very young children, presents alcohol messages within the context of science, and includes messages about how to ride safely when the child believes the adult driver has been drinking.

On November 9, 2001, in Landover, Maryland, Dr. Boyd met with staff from MADD, alcohol researchers, and representatives from other government agencies to discuss MADD's overall strategy for youth involvement in prevention programs. Meeting participants were invited to review MADD's ongoing activities and to provide suggestions for future MADD initiatives.

On November 30, 2001, Dr. Susan Martin represented NIAAA at the initial meeting of a new committee established by the NIH Office of Behavioral and Social Science Research (OBSSR) to explore the role of education in health outcomes.

On December 4, 2001, the Prevention Research Branch hosted a delegation of addiction counselors and prevention. specialists from Cypress who participate in a United States Agency for International Development (USAID)/Fulbright Commission program to promote advancements on common issues experienced by the two sides (Greek and Turkish) of this divided Eastern Mediterranean island. The delegation included three Turkish Cypriots and three Greek Cypriots whose backgrounds are in psychiatry and psychology. The Greek Orthodox church was represented by a Cypriot bishop. Dr. Howard chaired the information-sharing meeting and was joined by Drs. Salaita and Michael Hilton from DCPR as well as other NIAAA staff.

On December 19, 2001, Dr. Salaita represented NIAAA at the Priority Alcohol Safety programs Meeting, hosted by the Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation. Participants in the meeting, which was held in Calverton, Maryland, included representatives from the National Highway Safety Traffic Administration, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, and the National Commission Against Drunk Driving.

On January 14, 2002, Dr. Salaita represented NIAAA at the Transportation Research Board Committee on Alcohol, Other Drugs, and Transportation, at the 81st Annual Meeting of the Transportation Research Board, Washington, D.C.

On January 22, 2002, Dr. Salaita represented NIAAA at a meeting of the Impaired Driving Coalition for the State of Maryland, which was held at the Maryland State Highway Safety Administration, Office of Traffic and Safety, in Hanover, Maryland.

Dr. Howard was appointed to represent NIAAA at meetings of the newly created trans-NIH Community-Based Participatory Research Interagency Work Group, which will have its first meeting in Bethesda, Maryland on February 22, 2002. This working group will review and evaluate experiences involving participatory research in community settings and make recommendations based on these findings. Dr. Howard has published several articles on participatory research and helped develop an NIAAA/CSAP Monograph (1995) titled: "The Challenge of Participatory Research: Preventing Alcohol-Related Problems in Ethnic Communities."

Presentations

On October 10, 2001, Dr. Kathy Salaita presented a paper titled "Results of Analysis of Data on Aggressive Driving Behavior" at the 2nd Annual Symposium on Aggressive Driving, University of Maryland, University College, College Park, Maryland.

On November 8, 2001 in Rockville, Maryland, NIAAA hosted a meeting of the National Drug Prevention League at which Dr. Jan Howard gave a presentation on new initiatives in alcohol-focused prevention research supported by the Prevention Research Branch.

On November 8, 2001, Dr. Susan Martin presented a paper titled "Trends in Alcohol Use, Cocaine Use and Crime: 1989-1998" at the annual meeting of the American Society of Criminology in Atlanta, GA.

On November 9, 2001, Dr. Martin was a discussant on a panel "Gender Differences in the Criminal Consequences of Childhood Victimization" at the annual meeting of the American Society of Criminology in Atlanta, GA.

Publications

Boyd, Gayle, Vivian Faden, and Mark Goldman (Eds.). Alcohol Problems on College Campuses. Journal of Studies on Alcohol, Special supplement (in press).

Howard, Jan. Preventing alcohol-related problems: Some challenging research issues. Alcohol Research and Health (in press).

Martin, Susan E. (2001). The links between alcohol, crime, and the criminal justice system: Explanations, evidence, and interventions. American Journal on Addictions 10:136-158.

Martin, Susan E. and Kendall Bryant. (2001). Gender differences in the association of alcohol intoxication and illicit drug abuse among persons arrested for violent and property offenses. Journal of Substance Abuse 13:563-581.

Health Services Research Branch

Re-issued Program Announcement

On September 27, 2001, the Health Services Research Branch (HSRB) re-issued its Program Announcement "Health Services Research on Alcohol-Related Problems" (PA-01-142). The announcement encourages a broad range of research about alcohol treatment services. These include studies of managed care, the costs of alcoholism treatment, the coordination of specialty alcoholism treatment with other medical services, brief interventions, pathways toward entering treatment, treatment retention, and barriers to treatment faced by specific population groups. The announcement continues to emphasize the research priorities identified by the National Advisory Council in its 1997 report Improving the Delivery of Alcohol Treatment and Prevention Services: A National Plan for Alcohol Health Services Research.

Researcher-in-Residence Program

The Researcher-in-Residence program continues to operate in North Carolina. Site visits to all four participating treatment clinics were made between September 2001 and January 2002. These clinics are attempting to adopt research-based improvements in clinical practice based on the stimulus of a brief, technical-assistance visit by a leading researcher. Two of the participating clinics are attempting to adopt the use of naltrexone in treatment practice and two are attempting to adopt the techniques of motivational interviewing to enhance client engagement. This program is jointly sponsored by the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment (CSAT) and is one of a number of research-to-practice efforts undertaken by federal agencies concerned with alcohol and drug abuse treatment.

Presentations

On September 20, 2001, Dr. Mike Hilton gave a presentation "Research Funding Opportunities at NIAAA" at the Heller School, Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts.

On September 21, 2001, Dr. Hilton gave a presentation "Research Funding Opportunities at NIAAA" at the Center for Addiction Studies, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island.

October 22, 2001, Dr. Michael Hilton gave a presentation "NIAAA Practice Improvement Initiatives" at the Fifth Annual Statewide Conference, Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Providers of New York State, Saratoga Springs, New York.

On December 12, 2001, Dr. Hilton gave a presentation "Research Funding Opportunities at NIAAA" at the University of Miami School of Medicine, Miami, Florida.

Dr. Harold Perl's participation in the 129th annual meeting of the American Public Health Association, October 21-25, 2001 in Atlanta, Georgia includes the following presentations and other activities:

organized and gave a presentation "Research Funding Opportunities;

participated in the session "An Evening with Funding Agencies in Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Drug Research;"

served as moderator for the symposium, "Private Health Insurance and Substance Abuse Treatment;

participated on the expert panel for the session, "Bridging Research Knowledge to Community Practice: The Public Health Imperative for Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services;" and

served as discussant for the symposium, "Substance Abuse in the Welfare Population: Implications for Policy and Research."

Publication

In December 2001, HSRB published FrontLines, its semi-annual newsletter produced in collaboration with the Academy for Health Services Research and Health Policy, on the topic of Pharmacological Treatments for Alcohol Problems. 

DIVISION OF INTRAMURAL CLINICAL AND BIOLOGICAL RESEARCH

Significant Events

DICBR Sabbatical Program for Prominent Extramural Scientists

The NIH mission is to rapidly address emerging health issues, often by taking on high-risk projects that require considerable staffing flexibility that is not easily achieved under the existing recruiting system. To begin to address this problem within the DICBR, Dr. Kunos initiated a sabbatical program for prominent extramural scientists whose recent research has the promise of opening new avenues in alcohol research. Such individuals will be invited to spend up to a year conducting research in the DICBR with the Program providing part or all of the researcher's salary and the cost of lab supplies. If successful, this program could considerably enhance the ability of NIAAA to serve as the focus of progress in alcohol research, and it may serve as a model for the intramural NIH program in general. Such a program could lead to a more cost-effective way of conducting cutting-edge research.

To date, Dr. Ephraim Yavin, Professor & Chair, Department of Neurobiology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel, and Dr. Lumir O. Hanus, Professor/Researcher, Department of Natural Products, School of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine, Hebrew University, Ein Kerem, Jerusalem, have participated in the sabbatical program. Dr. Yavin, introduced in our September 2001 report, will spend one year in the DICBR. Dr. Hanus, introduced below, will be returning to his own laboratory at the end of the month. Dr. Lee Limbird, Vice Chancellor for Research at Vanderbilt University and a very prominent scientist working on G protein-coupled receptors, has expressed interest in spending a year as a Fogarty Scholar in Dr. Lovinger's newly established Laboratory of Integrative Neuroscience.

Special Training

Joannie C Shen, MD (LCS) attend course titled Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), Sponsored by Harvard Medical School, Cambridge MA, 24-26 September 2001.

Joannie C Shen, MD (LCS) attend the Visiting Fellowship Program in Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging at Massachusetts General Hospital, Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Center, Charlestown MA, 22-26 October 2001.

Invited Speakers

11/01/01 Dr. Andrey Ryabinin (Oregon Health Sciences University) presented a seminar entitled, "Identification of a brain region selectively sensitive to pharmacological actions of alcohol."

11/29/01 Dr. Ron Alkana (University of Southern California) presented a seminar entitled, "Pressure Antagonism of Ethanol: From Mice to Oocytes."

12/04/01 Dr Stephen Cunnane (University of Toronto) presented a seminar entitled, "Carbon recycling via ketogenesis: An important new pathway in alpha-linolenate metabolism in fetuses and neonates."

12/06/01 Dr. Andreas Heinz (University of Heidelberg) presented a seminar entitled, "Brain Imaging Studies on the Disposition and Maintenance of Alcoholism."

12/20/01 Dr. Laura Nagy (Case Western Reserve University) presented a seminar entitled, "Disruption of Lipopolysaccharide-stimulated Signal Transduction by Ethanol" previously scheduled for 9/13/01.

01/17/02 Dr. Christopher Stubbs (Professor of Cell Biology, Dept. of Pathology, Anatomy & Cell Biology, Thomas Jefferson University) presented a seminar entitled, "Protein Kinase C as a Target for Alcohol and Anesthetics."

Collaborations

	10/24-30/01	Dr. Bin Gao (LPS) met with Dr. Tian (Univiversity of Science and Technology, Hefei, China) to discuss collaboration
	11/08/01	Dr. Jerry Wright (Johns Hopkins Med Inst, Dept Physiology) met with LMCN staff re collaborative project
	01/10/02	Dr. Bin Gao (LPS) met with Drs. Kimball and Ishac (Medical College of Virginia) to discuss project of resistance to interferon therapy, Richmond VA
	01/10-13/02	Dr. Aneeq Ahmed (Henderson State University) met with LMBB staff to discuss collaborative work concerning neuroanatomical changes in the rat brain subsequent to lead exposure
	01/20-25/02	Dr. Joseph Hibbeln (LMBB) met with Dr. Peter Willats (University of Dundee, UK) to establish collaborative research studies and visited the University of Bristol to discuss the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) Project and present lecture
	01/24/02	Dr. Klaus Gawrisch met with Dr. Alexandros Makriyannis (University of Connecticut at Storrs) to discuss cannabinoid receptors

Dr. George Kunos has established a number of collaborations: with Dr. Richard D. Palmiter (Howard Hughes Inst., Univ. of Washington, Seattle) on appetitive mechanisms;

with Dr. Benjamin Cravatt (Scripps Institute) on endocannabinoid metabolism; c) with Dr. David Julius (UCSF) on vanilloid receptor mechanisms;

with Dr. T.K. Li and Dr. Harry June (Indiana University) on brain mechanisms of ethanol preference; with Dr. Roger Nicoll (USCF) on retrograde signaling in the hippocampus.

Staff Activities

DICBR Staff Participation at the NIH Research Festival, Bethesda MD, 2-5 October 2001

Mohammed Akbar (LMBB) presented poster DHA Protects Apoptosis-induced by Serum Starvation: A Cross-talk between Raf/MAP and Pl3/Akt Kinase Pathways

William Astor (LNG) presented poster Genetic Association Using Multiple Loci at the Human DRD2 Dopamine Receptor Gene in a Large Population-Based Smoking Study

Myung-Ae Bae (LMBB) presented poster Cytotoxic Mechanism of Troglitazone, a Widely-Used Drug for Type II Non-Insulin Dependent Diabetes

Sandor Batkai (LPS) presented poster Cannabinoid-Induced Vasorelaxation Mediated by a Novel G Protein-Coupled Receptor

Philip J Brooks (LNG) presented poster A 32P-Postlabeling Assay for the Oxidative DNA Lesion 8,5 '-Cyclo-2'-deoxyadenosine in Mammalian Tissues: Evidence that Four Type II I-Compounds are Dinucleotides Containing the Lesion in the 3 ' Nucleotide

Nadukuddy Eldho (LMBB) presented poster Docosahexaenoic Acid - The Difference that the Loss of a Single Double Bond Makes

Erica F. Ferro (LNG) presented poster Association of Mu-Opioid Receptor and Delta-Opioid Receptor Gene Variation with Drug and Alcohol Abuse in Different Populations

Feng Hong (LPS) presented poster Elevated Interleukin-6 During Ethanol Consumption Acts as a Potential Enodgenous Protective Cytokine Against Ethanol-Induced Apoptosis in the Liver: Involvement of Induction of Bcl-2 and Bcl-xL Proteins

Won-Ho Kim (LPS) presented poster ive Activation of Hepatic NF-kB by Ethanol and Viral Hepatitis Proteins: Involvement of TNF Receptor l-independent and -dependent Mechanisms

Yun-Sik Lee (LMBB) presented poster Elevation of Nuclear 8-oxo-deoxyguanosine Levels and Rapid Degradation of p53 Tumor Suppressor Protein by Acetaminophen in C6 Glioma Cells

William Lefkowitz (LMBB) presented poster Where Does the DHA in the Brain Come From: Diet or Metabolism?

Sun-Young Lim (LMBB) presented poster Use of Artificial Rat Breast and Artificial Rat Milk for the Complete Control of the Rodent Diet: Induction of n-3 Fatty Acid Deficiency and Functional Loss in the Nervous System

Yuhong Lin (LMBB) presented poster Study of Essential Fatty Acid Metabolism Using Stable Isotope Tracer Technique in Adult Rats

Drake Mitchell (LMBB) presented poster Ethanol Accelerates and Enhances Receptor-G Protein

Shui-Lin Niu (LMBB) presented poster Thermodynamic Contribution of Lipid Acyl Chain Unsaturation and Headgroup Composition to the Nonhomogenous Cholesterol Distribution in Cell Membranes

Zohra Olumee-Shabon (LMBB) presented poster Characterization of Protein Conformation by Chemical Crosslinking and Mass Spectrometry

Walter E Teague (LMBB) presented poster Influence of Polyunsaturation on Membrane Curvature Elasticity for 1-Steroyl-2-Docosahexaenoyl-sn-Glycero-3-Phosphoethanolamine

DICBR Staff Participation at the Molecular Mechanisms of Alcohol & Anesthetic Conference, Philadelphia PA, 4-7 October 2001

Klaus Gawrisch, Ph.D. (LMBB) presented poster Molecular Interactions that Determine the Affinity of Biomol for Ethanol

Robert Peoples, Ph.D. (LMCN) presented a lecture and a poster titled Role of Ion Channel Gating in Alcohol Inhibition of NMDA Receptors

Laboratory Of Neurogenetics Staff Participation at the 51st Annual Meeting of the American Society of Human Genetics, San Diego CA, 12-16 October 2001

David Goldman, MD, presented poster COMT VAL158MET and Cognitive Executive Function

Ke Xu, MD/Ph.D., presented poster COMT Haplotype Relative Risk for Substance Dependence in Four Populations

Guanshan Zhu, MD/Ph.D., presented poster Transcribed Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms as Markers for Screening Genomic Imprinting

DICBR Staff Participation at the 4th Annual Meeting of the International Behavioural ad Neural Genetics Society (IBANGS), San Diego CA, 8-10 November 2001 - A Satellite Symposium of the Annual Meeting of the Society For Neuroscience

Mary-Anne Enoch, MD (LNG) Chaired symposium on GENETICS OF PSYCHIATRIC DISORDERS USING INTERMEDIATE PHENOTYPES and presented lecture EEG and ERP Intermediate Phenotypes For Alcoholism And Anxiety Disorders

David Goldman, MD (LNG) presented lecture Alcoholism Candidate Alleles and Haplotypes in the GABA/Serotonin Domain

Paolo DePetrillo, MD (LCS) presented lecture Heart Rate Variability as an Intermediate Phenotype

DICBR Staff Participation at the 31st Annual Meeting of the Society For Neuroscience, San Diego CA, 10-15 November 2001

James M. Bjork, Ph.D. (LCS) presented poster Intracranial Brain Volume and Behavior Control in Alcoholics

Mary-Anne Enoch, MD (LNG) presented poster Association Between the COMT Val158met Polymorphism, Anxiety Measures and EEG Phenotype in Two Independent Female Populations

Erica Ferro (LNG) presented poster Association of Mu-Opioid Receptor and Delta-Opioid Receptor Gene Variation with Drug Abuse in Different Populations

Grace Fong, MS (LCS) presented poster Dissociation of Reward Anticipation and Feedback Using Event-Related FMRI

James D Higley, Ph.D. (LCS) presented poster Relationships Between Behavior and Neurochemical Changes in Rhesus Macaques During a Separation Paradigm

Yumiko Honse, Ph.D. (LMBB) presented poster Prenatal Ethanol Exposure Reduces NMDA Receptor Subunit Levels Associated with Post-Synaptic Membrane

Masako Hosoi, MD/Ph.D. (LMCN) presented poster Inhibition of Spontaneous Channel Opening by the Positive Charge of the Amino Acid at 245 in the 5-HT3A Receptor

Yoshio Kanemitsu, MD/Ph.D. (LMCN) presented poster Dynorphin Inhibition on NMDA Activated Current of NR1A/NR2B is not Mediated by the Redox Modulatory Sites

Susumu Koyama, MD/Ph.D. (LMCN) presented poster Pre- and Postsynaptic 5-HT3 Receptors in Rat Ventral Tegmental Area (VTA)

Edgar M. Moradel (LMCN) presented poster The Possible Involvement of Cytoskeleton in the Phorbol Ester Potentiation of the 5-HT3A Receptor-Mediated Response

Joannie C. Shen, MD (LCS) presented poster Differential Brain Activation Response to Frequencies of Electroacupuncture

Hui Sun, MD (LMCN) presented poster Two Splice Variants of Murine 5-HT3A Receptors Expressed in Xenopus Oocytes are not Differentially Modulated by Phorbol Ester (PMA) Activation of Protein Kinase C (PKC)

Elena Werby, Ph.D. (LMCN) presented poster Differential Modulation of GABAA Receptor Function by Single Amino Acid Mutation Immediately Preceding the First Transmembrane Domain of the or Subunit

Ke-Ming Xiong (LMCN) presented poster Mutation of Histidine 241 of the Rat P2X4 Receptor Alters Agonist and Antagonist Sensitivities

Pingjun Zhu, MD/Ph.D. (LMCN) presented poster Ethanol Modulation of Nicotinic Acetylcholine Receptor Function in Rat Medial Habenular Neurons

DICBR Staff Participation at the Annual Meeting of the American College Of Neuropsychopharmacology (ACNP), Waikoloa HI, 9-15 December 2001

David Goldman, MD (LNG) presented lecture in symposium titled Neuropsychiatric Genomics: From Linkage to Gene Identification and Target Detection

James D Higley, Ph.D. (LCS) presented poster CNS Monoamine Metabolites, Plasma Hormones, and Social Dominance Rank as Predictors of Alcohol Consumption in Rhesus Macaques

Other Meetings/Invited Lectures

Klaus Gawrisch, Ph.D. (LMBB) presented lecture at City College of New York, 3 October 2001

Mari Mineta, Ph.D. (LNG) present the poster First-Stage Genome-Wide Sib-Pair Linkage Analysis Of Schizophrenia In Japanese Population at the World Congress for PsychiatricGenetics, St. Louis MO, 6-10 October 2001

George Kunos, MD/Ph.D. (LPS) visit Neurosci Res Ctr in Budapest & Tihany Hungary, 1/22-23/02, and present lecture at the International Brain Research Organization International Workshop on Signaling Mechanisms in the Central and Peripheral Nervous System, Debrecen, Hungary, 1/24-26/02

Joseph R. Hibbeln, MD (LMBB) presented lecture at the Fatty Acids in Neurodevelopmental Disorders Workshop (09/20-22/01) and presented lecture to the Academic Department of Psychiatry (09/25/01), Oxford University UK, 20-25 September 2001

Bin Gao, MD/Ph.D. (LPS) present paper "Interaction Of Alcohol...Proteins" at the 3rd International Symposium on Hepatology, Hang Zhou, China (10/18-23/01); Collaborate W/Dr. Tian At Univ Sci & Tech China, Hefei, China 10/24-30/01

Antonia Calzone, MS (AMB) presented Workshop on Development of Relational Dtabases to attendees of the 52nd National Meeting American Association for Laboratory Animal Science (AALAS), Baltimore MD, 21-25 October 2001

Drake Mitchell, Ph.D. (LMBB) presented invited lecture/course on Biological Membranes, University of Miami, Department of Physiology & Biophysics, Miami FL, 27-29 October 2001

George Kunos, MD/Ph.D. (LPS) presented lecture Endocannabinoids and the Control of Food and Ethanol Intake at the Keystone Symposium "Molecular Control of Adipogenesis & Obesity", Keystone CO, 10-16 January 2002

Klaus Gawrisch, Ph.D. (LMBB) presented invited a seminar entitled, "Properties Of Polyunsat.Hydrocarbon Chains", University of Connecticut at Storrs, Department of Pharmacology, 24 January 2002

David Goldman, MD (LNG) presented symposium lecture Biochemical & Neuroimaging Studies of GABA Alterations in Alcohol Dependence at the Winter Conference on Brain Research, Snowmass CO, 26 January - 2 February 2002

Articles

Batkai S, Jarai Z, Wagner JA, Goparaju SK, Varga K, Liu J, Wang L, Mirshahi F, Khanolkar AD, Makriyannis A, Urbaschek R, Garcia N, Sanyal AJ, Kunos G: Endocannabinoids acting at vascular CB1 receptors mediate the vasodilated state in advance liver cirrhosis. Nature Medicine 2001;7(7):827-832

Wilson RI, Kunos G, Nicoll R: Presynaptic specificity of endocannabinoid signaling in the hippocampus. Neuron 2001;31(8):453-462

Bae MA, Pie JE, Song BJ: Acetaminophen induces apoptosis of C6 glioma cells by activating the c-Jun NH2-terminal protein kinase-related cell death pathway. Mol Pharmacol 2001;60(4):847-56

Burgdorf J, Knutson B, Panksepp J, et al: Nucleus accumbens amphetamine microinjections unconditionally elicit 50-kHz ultrasonic vocalizations in rats. Behav Neurosci 2001;115(4):940-4

Chen JP, Clemens DL, Cederbaum AI, et al: Ethanol inhibits the JAK-STAT signaling pathway in freshly isolated rat hepatocytes but not in cultured hepatocytes or HepG2 cells: evidence for a lack of involvement of ethanol metabolism. Clin Biochem 2001;34(3):203-9

Dvoskin R, Lindell SG, Higley JD, et al: No detectable prolactin in human saliva. Biol Psychiat 2001;50(10):817-8 (Reply)

Enoch MA, White KV, Harris CR, et al: Alcohol use disorders and anxiety disorders: Relation to the P300 event-related potential. Alcohol Clin Exp Res 2001;25(9):1293-300

George DT, Umhau JC, Phillips MJ, et al: Serotonin, testosterone and alcohol in the etiology of domestic violence. Psychiat Res 2001;104(1):27-37

Gould TD, Bastain TM, Israel ME, et al: Altered performance on an ocular fixation task in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder. Biol Psychiat 2001;50(8):633-5

Hong F, Kim WH, Tian ZG, et al: Elevated interleukin-6 during ethanol consumption acts as a potential endogenous protective cytokine against ethanol-induced apoptosis in the liver: involvement of induction of Bcl-2 and Bcl-X-L proteins. Oncogene 2002;21(1):32-43

Jeffrey BG, Weisinger HS, Neuringer M, et al: The role of docosahexaenoic acid in retinal function. LIPIDS 2001;36(9):859-71

Karimullah K, George DT, DePetrillo PB: The time-course of electrocardiographic interbeat interval dynamics in alcoholic subjects after short-term abstinence. Eur J Pharmacol 2001;427(3):227-33

Kim WH, Hong F, Jaruga B, et al: Additive activation of hepatic NF-kappa B by ethanol and HBX or HCV core protein: involvement of TNF-alpha receptor I-independent and -dependent mechanisms: FASEB J 2001;15(11):U141-62

Knutson B, Fong GW, Adams CM, et al: Dissociation of reward anticipation and outcome with event-related fMRI. Neuroreport 2001;12(17):3683-7

Knutson B, Momenan R, Rawlings RR, et al: Negative association of neuroticism with brain volume ratio in healthy humans. BIOL PSYCHIAT 2001;50(9):685-90

Kunos G, Batkai S: Novel physiologic functions of endocannabinoids as revealed through the use of mutant mice. Neurochem Res 2001;26(8-9):1015-21

Mitchell DC, Niu SL, Litman BJ: Optimization of receptor-G protein coupling by bilayer lipid composition I - Kinetics of rhodopsin-transducin binding. J Biol Chem 2001;276(46):42801-6

Niu SL, Mitchell DC, Litman BJ: Optimization of receptor-G protein coupling by bilayer lipid composition II - Formation of metarhodopsin II-transducin complex. J Biol Chem 2001;276(46):42807-11

Pawlosky RJ, Bacher J, Salem N: Ethanol consumption alters electroretinograms and depletes neural tissues of docosahexaenoic acid in rhesus monkeys: Nutritional consequences of a low n-3 fatty acid diet. Alcohol Clin Exp Res 2001;25(12):1758-65

Rackoff J, Yang QF, DePetrillo PB: Inhibition of rat PC12 cell calpain activity by glutathione, oxidized glutathione and nitric oxide. Neurosci Lett 2001;311(2):129-32

Randerath K, Zhou GD, Somers RL, Robbins JH, Brooks PJ: A P-32-Postlabeling assay for the oxidative DNA lesion 8,5 '-cyclo-2 '-deoxyadenosine in mammalian tissues - Evidence that four type II I-compounds are dinucleotides containing the lesion in the 3 ' nucleotide. J Biol Chem 2001;276(38):36051-7

Salem N, Litman B, Kim HY, et al: Mechanisms of action of docosahexaenoic acid in the nervous system. LIPIDS 2001;36(9):945-59

Veech RL, Chance B, Kashiwaya Y, et al: Ketone bodies, potential therapeutic uses. IUBMB Life 2001;51(4):241-7

Westergaard GC, Lussier ID, Higley JD: Between-species variation in the development of hand preference among macaques. Neuropsychologia 2001;39(13):1373-8

Wilson RI, Kunos G, Nicoll RA: Presynaptic specificity of endocannabinoid signaling in the hippocampus. Neuron 2001;31(3):453-62

Abstracts

Bukoski RD, Batkai S, Jarai Z, et al: The CB1 receptor antagonist SR141716A inhibits Ca2+-induced relaxation in CB1 receptor deficient mice. Possible role for a non-classial cannabinoids receptor? Hypertension 2001;38(3):509

Goldman D, Malhotra A, Egan M, et al: COMT Val158Met and cognitive executive function. Am J Hum Genet 2001;69(4):562 [Suppl]

Kunos G: Endocannabinoids: Emerging role in cardiovascular and neuroendocrine regulation. Am Chem S 2001;222:U690-1 [Part 1]

Radel M, Vallejo R, Aragon R, et al: Analysis of GABAA receptor subunit genes in Alcohol Dependence and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder. Am J Hum Genet 2001;69(4):576 [Suppl]

Rudolph JG, Lipsky RH, Peoples R: Identification of a functional variant in the NMDAR1 receptor subunit resulting in altered effects of ethanol. Am J Hum Genet 2001;69(4):551 [Suppl]

Zhu G, Lipsky RH, Xu K, et al: Transcribed single nucleotide polymorphisms as markers for screening genomic imprinting. Am J Hum Genet 2001;69(4):466 [Suppl]


VI. UPCOMING MEETINGS

The following Alcohol Research Utilization System (ARUS) symposia and activities have been scheduled for the next four months (February, March, April, and May).

Date	Meeting	Contact
March 14, 2002	Medication Development/Preclinical Workshop Bethesda Marriott, Bethesda, Maryland	Dr. Michael Eckardt 301-443-6107 meckardt@mail.nih.gov
March 15, 2002	Proteomics Workshop Bethesda Marriott, Bethesda, Maryland	Dr. Michael Eckardt 301-443-6107 meckardt@mail.nih.gov
March 21, 2002	Medications Development/Clinical Workshop Bethesda Marriott, Bethesda, Maryland	Dr. Patricia Powell 301-443-5106 ppowell@mail.nih.gov
April 11, 2002	Mark Keller Honorary Lecture and Award - Dr. Harold Kalant has been selected to receive the annual Mark Keller Award and to deliver the lecture entitled "Comparison of Mechanisms of Tolerance and Dependence Among Alcohol, Opiates, and Other Psychoactive Drugs." Masur Auditorium, NIH Campus, Bethesda, MD	Nancy Colladay 301-443-3860; ncollada@niaaa.nih.gov
April 25-28, 2002	"Genetics and Alcoholism in the Age of the Human Genome Project," a symposium during the American Society of Addiction Medicine's (ASAM) 33rd Annual Medical-Scientific Conference, Atlanta, Georgia	Dr. Antonio Noronha 301-443-7722 anoronha@niaaa.nih.gov
May 6-7, 2002	"Role of Tobacco Dependence in Alcoholism Residence Inn by Marriott, Bethesda, Maryland	Dr. Joanne Fertig 301-443-0635 jfertig@mail.nih.gov

VII. STAFF NOTES

Staffing Update

Office of Collaborative Research, Diana Urbanas, M.S. was recently appointed Public Health Analyst for the Office of Collaborative Research, Research Development and Health Disparities Programs Branch. Diana's responsibilities include developing collaborative alcohol research for minority serving institutions, managing related support activities, and coordinating the NIAAA-wide Health Disparities program. Diana has training in public health communications (Georgetown) and clinical psychology (Goucher). She comes to us with valuable experience in research program development, including for minority institutions, and recently worked on a NIAAA-sponsored contract to promote collaboration between Meharry Medical College and the University of Wisconsin.

Anton Bizzell, M.D. joined the Office of Collaborative Research as a medical officer. Dr. Bizzell obtained a M.D. at the University of Virginia and completed his residency at Howard University. He brings experience in developing programs to increase screening for at-risk behaviors in primary care settings. He will be working with Peggy Murray in the International and Health Education Programs Branch.Office of Resource Management

Ms. Linda Hilley has been appointed as the NIAAA Deputy Executive Officer. An NIAAA staff member for 23 years, Linda has served for four years as the Grants Management Officer and, most recently, as the NIAAA Acting Budget Officer.

Ms. Judy Simons has been selected as the NIAAA Grants Management Officer. Judy has been with NIAAA since 1988 as a Grants Management Specialist. Most recently, Judy served as the Acting, Grants Management Officer.

Ms. Laura Lee joins the Financial Management Branch as a Budget Analyst.  Ms. Lee received her Bachelor's degree in Accounting from the University of Maryland and is a Certified Public Accountant.  She has worked in the accounting field for over 15 years and is currently a member of American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and Maryland Association of Certified Public Accountants.  Most recently, Ms. Lee was a Financial Specialist at National Education Association's Member Benefits Corporation. Office of Scientific Affairs

John Bowersox, a science writer, joined the NIAAA Office of Scientific Affairs on December 3, 2001. John will work with both the Scientific Communications Branch and the Planning and Evaluation Branch on a variety of writing tasks. He comes to NIAAA from the NIH Office of Disease Prevention, where he served as communications officer for the NIH Consensus Development Program. Prior to that, John worked as a science writer at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Office of Communications.Division of Intramural Clinical and Biological Research

Term Appointments Brian W. Bailey, Ph.D., was appointed as a Post-Doctoral Intramural Research Training Award (IRTA) Fellow (11/01/2001-10/31/2003), Section on Fluorescence Studies, Laboratory of Membrane Biochemistry & Biophysics (LMBB). Dr. Bailey received his Ph.D. in Biochemistry from Montana State University in October 2001. While with the LMBB, Dr. Bailey will receive training in numerous biochemical techniques utilized to study the function of purified, isolated membrane proteins. He will have an opportunity to apply this training to a research project designed to examine the effects of membrane composition and acute ethanol exposure on the 5HT2A receptor as well as to on-going projects examining G protein-mediated signal transduction.

Michelle L. Becker, Ph.D., was appointed as a Post-Doctoral IRTA Fellow (10/22/01-10/21/03), Laboratory of Clinical Studies, Primate Unit. Dr. Becker received her Ph.D. in Experimental Psychology from the University of Memphis in 2000. Dr. Becker also holds an MS (1995) in Experimental Psychology from Northeast Louisiana University and a BA (1991) in Psychology from the University of Nebraska, Omaha. During this appointment, Dr. Becker will receive training that will expand her current knowledge and enable to her become an independent researcher with skills in rhesus macaque psychobiology. She will be taught the requisite skills to assess CNS serotonin function, social behavior and psychopathology in the rhesus macaque. She will also have an opportunity to integrate her previously acquired skills and training to form a program of research that links nonhuman primate vocal behaviors and cognition with interindividual differences in CNS serotonin function, alcohol consumption and impaired impulse control.

Julia Topol Healey, M.D., has been appointed as a Post-Doctoral IRTA Fellow (11/01/01-03/30/03) in the Section on Molecular Neuroscience, Laboratory of Molecular & Cellular Neurobiology (LMCN). Dr. Healey received her MD (with a major in biochemistry) from the Russian State Medical University, Moscow, in 1997. Between 1995-99, Dr. Healey served as a Research Associate and Scientist at the Laboratory of Gene Engineering & Immunogenetics, Institute of Physico-Chemical Medicine, Ministry of Health & Health Industry, Moscow, where she conducted research using molecular biological techniques to study the mechanism of tetracycline resistance of mycoplasma hominis. In 1998, Dr. Healey served briefly as a Medical Research Associate in the Moscow R&D Department of ICN Pharmaceuticals Inc, where she was responsible for managing a database of antibiotic and antiviral drugs and assisted in collecting and organizing information on pharmaceutical research in Russia. Between April 2000 and October 2001, Dr. Healey worked at the Federal Data Corp (Rockville MD) where she was responsible for maintaining a tissue culture facility. While with the LMCN, Dr. Healey will receive training in molecular biological and electrophysiological techniques that will enable her to study the cellular and molecular physiology and pharmacology of neuronal receptors and ion channels and the interaction of alcohol and other neuroactive substances with those mechanisms.

Lumir Ondrej Hanus, Ph.D., was appointed as a Senior Research Fellow, Visiting Program (11/01/01 - 02/28/02) in the Section on Neuroendocrinology, Laboratory of Physiologic Studies. Dr. Hanus, is Professor/Researcher, Department of Natural Products, School of Pharmacy, Faculty of Medicine, Hebrew University, Ein Kerem, Jerusalem. His major interests involve chemistry of natural products (isolation and identification from plants, animal brain, plasma, cerebrospinal fluid), thin-layer chromatography, preparative chromatography, column chromatography, gas chromatography, HPLC, GC/MS and bioassay for receptor-ligand binding. He has authored more than 50 scientific publications and holds a US Patent. Dr. Hanus is collaborating on research that involves the determination of endocannabinoid levels in hibernating animals and, possibly, in animals addicted to alcohol. A segment of the work under this collaboration is being conducted in LPS, and requires Dr. Hanus' participation, thus his four-month appointment. Key experiments associated with this project will be conducted in his primary laboratory.

Nadia S. Hejazi, M.D., was appointed as a Research Fellow, Visiting Program (01/14/02-01/13/04) in the Section on Molecular Neuroscience, LMCN. Dr. Hejazi received her MD (1989) from King Abdul Aziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, followed by seven years of clinical training in pediatrics, neonatology, emergency medicine and neurology. Additional specialized clinical training in neuropathology, pediatric EEG and irradiation effects in children was received at the University of Washington, Seattle, UTSW, Dallas and Childrens Medical Center, Dallas, respectively. Prior to joining LMCN, Dr. Hejazi served as a Neurology Fellow at the King Faisal Specialist Hospital & Research Center, Riyadh, where she studied families with hereditary hyperekplexia (pathological exaggeration of the normal startle reflex) and found this syndrome to be associated with mutations in the beta subunit of the glycine receptor. While with LMCN, Dr. Hejazi will conduct investigation of the molecular determinants of membrane ion channel and neurotransmitter receptor function.

Jasmin B Salloum, Ph.D., was appointed as a Visiting Fellow (11/01/01-10/31/03) in the Section on Brain Electrophysiology and Imaging, Laboratory of Clinical Studies. Dr. Salloum received her Ph.D. (2001) in Psychology from Ruhr University, Bochum, Germany; her MS (1997) in Psychology from Heinrich-Heine University, Dusseldorf, Germany; and, her BA (1995) in Psychology from Richmond College, London, UK. Prior to joining the LCS, Dr. Salloum served as a Fellow of Science, Department of Psychiatry & Psychotherapy, School of Medicine, Heinrich-Heine University. Dr. Salloum's research interests include emotion, cortical and subcortical substrates of emotional behavior, emotional disorders in psychiatric patients (schizophrenia, psychopathy, alcohol addiction-craving), standardized mood induction and functional MRI (fMRI). BEI, LCS is investigating brain function and structure in alcoholism and in individuals at risk. The lab uses fMRI as well as structural MRI and PET and has recently developed fMRI methods that allow the examination of functional neuroanatomy of motivation and emotion that has particular relevance to understanding relapse and craving among alcoholics and may be helpful in the development of new treatments. While with LCS, Dr. Salloum will participate in ongoing studies that will provide the opportunity to further her knowledge of fMRI methodology as well as expand her knowledge of Statistical Parametric Mapping.

Honors and Awards

Kurokawa Science Prize Recipient Yoshihiro Kashiwaya, M.D., Ph.D., Senior Research Fellow (Visiting Program), Laboratory of Membrane Biochemistry & Biophysics, was notified by the Dean of Kitasato Medical School on 23 October 2001 that he had been selected to receive the Kurokawa Science Prize for 2001. The prize is awarded for the most outstanding scientific publication produced by either the faculty or graduates of Kitasato Medical School during the year and consists of a certificate and monetary award.2002 Fare Award Recipients

Drs. Ivan Polozov and Nadukuddy Eldho, both Visiting Fellows in the Section of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance, Laboratory of Membrane Biochemistry & Biophysics, have won FARE awards in the 2002 competition. The FARE competition recognizes outstanding intramural scientific research and is open to postdoctoral IRTAs, visiting fellows, and other fellows with less than 5 years total postdoctoral experience in the NIH intramural research program. Recipients are given a $1000 Travel Award to be used to attend and present their work at a FY 2002 scientific meeting. Awardees are scheduled to present research posters following a NIH Wednesday Afternoon Lecture, and awardees will serve as the "postdoctoral" judges for the FARE 2003 competition.

Prepared: February 27, 2002