CONTENTS
Budget Summary
(Dollars in thousands)
|
FY 2000
Appropriation |
FY 2001
House |
FY 2001
Senate |
Extramural Research: |
|
|
|
Grants and Contracts |
$244,531 |
$291,174 |
$280,415 |
Research Training |
7,776 |
8,644 |
8,644 |
Intramural Research |
25,973 |
31,865 |
30,689 |
Research Management and Support |
14,089 |
17,100 |
17,100 |
Total, NIAAA (including AIDS) |
292,369 |
348,783 |
336,848 |
Percent increase over prior year |
|
19.3% |
15.2% |
AIDS (not added) |
(19,243) |
(20,083) |
(20,083) |
The FY 2000 NIAAA Appropriation of $292.4 million is a 12.0 percent increase over the FY 1999 level of $258.9 million. Included in the appropriation is $19.2 million for HIV/AIDS research. The Full House Appropriations Committee marked up the FY 2001 budget on May 24. The House committee recommends a 19.3 percent increase over the FY 2000 appropriations, and the Senate committee recommends a 15.2 percent increase over the FY 2000 appropriations. The HIV/AIDS research funding is reported at the FY 2001 President's Budget request ($20,083.) The distribution of this funding has not been determined. Neither the Full House nor the full Senate have voted on these levels. A conference mark-up has not been scheduled.
The following are new additions or modifications to existing information on NIAAA's Website:
- Alcohol Research & Health. After discussions with the Government Printing Office, NIAAA received approval to post the full text of Alcohol Research & Health on its Website. Issues will be available in the near future.
- Access to NIAAA's Clinical Trials Database and to the NIH-wide Clinical Trials database.
- Full text of the final report of the NIAAA Council Subcommittee for the Review of the Extramural Research Epidemiology Portfolio.
- NIAAA's FY 2000 Financial Management Plan for Competing Research Project Grants
- Full text of NIAAA's Strategic Plan for FY 2001-2005 (Revised FY 2008-2013).
- Full text of several NIAAA public education materials including Make a Difference: Talk to Your Child About Alcohol, How Does Alcohol Affect the World of a Child, and the two most current issues of NIAAA's peer reviewed, scientific journal, Alcohol Research & Health.
- Full-text of the following surveillance reports: Surveillance Report #49 : Trends in Alcohol-Related Fatal Traffic Crashes, United States, 1979-97. (Updated: #76, 1977-2004)
Surveillance Report #50 Trends in Alcohol-Related Morbidity Among Short-Stay Community Hospital Discharges, United States, 1979-97. (Updated: #80, 1979-2005)
Surveillance Report #51: Apparent Per Capita Alcohol Consumption: National, State, and Regional Trends, 1977-97. (Updated: #82, 1977-2005)
Surveillance Report #52: Liver Cirrhosis Mortality in the United States, 1970-96. Bethesda, MD: NIH/NIAAA, Alcohol Epidemiologic Data System, December 1999. (Updated: #79, 1970-2004)
(The NIAAA Website is managed by the Scientific Communications Branch, Office of Scientific Affairs)
NIH Director's Council of Public Representatives (COPR)
NIH Acting Director Dr. Ruth Kirschstein convened the most recent COPR meeting in April. The Council provides NIH with 20 more ambassadors to and from the community, groups, and individuals who may not be familiar with the agency, its mission and the fruits of its research investment. As in previous COPR meetings, selected Institute Directors (Dr. Hyman of NIMH and Dr. Collins of NHGRI) discussed their public liaison activities and how they use public input to help inform program development. Also on the discussion agenda were important topical issues such as health disparities and human subjects protection. The next COPR meeting is scheduled for October 31, 2000.
It gives me great pleasure to formally welcome George Kunos, M.D., Ph.D. as the new Scientific Director of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.
Since his graduation from medical school in 1966, Dr. Kunos has pursued an active career in research. His work has focused on adrenergic receptor mechanisms affecting cardiovascular responses to various physiological and pathological conditions. Dr. Kunos' laboratory was the first to document the mechanism of inverse regulation of a -adrenergic receptors and to develop the first radio-labeled affinity probe for a 1-adrenergic receptors in the liver. In addition, Dr. Kunos was the first scientist to describe the role of b -endorphin in actions of centrally active antihypertensive agents, such as clonidine and a -methyldopa.
In 1987, Dr. Kunos joined the NIAAA's intramural program as Chief of the Laboratory of Physiologic and Pharmacologic Studies and subsequently became Head of the Section on Pharmacology. During that time, and later as an NIAAA-funded grantee in his present position as Chairman, department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Medical College of Virginia, Dr. Kunos applied his extensive knowledge to alcohol research. He provided the first evidence that the effects of alcohol on the neural circuits that control blood pressure and heart rate are mediated by GABA receptors in the brain stem and that endogenous cannabinoid receptors play an important role in cardiovascular regulation. His laboratory also demonstrated that the hepatotoxic effects of alcohol are due, in part, to inhibition of IL-6 signaling and that the Raf/MAP kinase cascade is involved in regenerating rat hepatocytes.
Dr. Kunos has published more than 105 articles in prestigious journals, such as Science, Nature, FASEB Journal and Molecular and Cellular Biology. Six of his articles have been published in Nature and eight have been cited more than 100 times.
During his research career, Dr. Kunos also has nurtured and trained 24 post-doctoral fellows and nine graduate students, some of whom have become very successful researchers.
Dr. Kunos is internationally recognized as a leading scientist and has received numerous honors and awards. He was elected as a foreign member of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences; fellow, Council on High Blood Pressure Research, American Heart Association; and member, National Board of Medical Examiners.
Please join me in welcoming Dr. Kunos to the NIAAA.
Second Annual Alcohol Screening Day |
The second National Alcohol Screening Day (NASD) was held April 6, 2000. Over 50,000 letters were sent to community centers, hospitals, clinics, and colleges inviting them to participate. This year, a number of ancillary activities were planned to promote NASD. For example, NASD's college component was prominently featured in the NCAA Championship Tournament Program. Preliminary analysis of NASD indicate that sites that drew on a built-in audience did well, while those sites that relied on the Site Locator Line and promotional activities to draw potential participants to a health care facility (particularly a treatment center) for the sole purpose of being screened for an alcohol problem did poorly; and the results from College Sites are fairly similar to those of 1999 in terms of both numbers and implementation strategies.
To kick off the second annual National Alcohol Screening Day on April 6, an April 4 media briefing was held at Georgetown University. Senator Joseph R. Biden, Jr., (Delaware); Georgetown Dean of Students James Donahue, Ph.D.; Patrick Kilcarr, Ph.D., Director, Georgetown Center for Personal Development; Ms. Michelle Perry, Radford University student and drinking and driving crash survivor; Mr. Jeffrey Levy, father and MADD committee member; Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administrator Nelba Chavez; and Dr. Gordis addressed attendees about the importance of screening. Dr. Mary Dufour, NIAAA Deputy Director, gave numerous media interviews, including a live FOX News broadcast the morning of April 6. An NIAAA-developed video news release reached about 3 million viewers and print coverage included articles in Parade Magazine, USA Today, the Washington Post, and numerous local daily papers.
"National Leadership Initiative to Keep Children Alcohol Free" |
The "Leadership" initiative is rapidly expanding its activities. To date, Governors' spouses from 27 states have agreed to participate in this nation-wide coalition to prevent children ages 9-15 from drinking alcohol, and several more are strong possibilities for recruitment. The National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence has joined the list of more than 20 organizations on the Executive Working Group, which acts in an advisory capacity to the spouses. Stacia Murphy, President of the organization, will serve as the representative. The initiative, which is being developed and funded by the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism and The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, with additional support from the NIH Offices of Research on Women's Health and Research on Minority Health, is also attracting further Federal support. Most recently, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration pledged a total of $1 million over the next three years to assist the spouses with their outreach efforts. The Justice Department's Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention and the Transportation Department's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration have also expressed an interest in becoming involved in this project.
Leadership Conference, March 23-24, 2000
The Governors' spouses officially launched the initiative with a national conference in Washington, D.C. The conference brought together spouses from participating states and leading scientists and other experts in the field to consider the problem of underage drinking and how to combat it. The presentations and panel discussions during the day-and-a-half meeting covered a range of topics, including findings from current research on alcohol use by children, environmental influences on children's alcohol consumption, the role of parents and schools in curtailing underage drinking, community and state prevention efforts, and the relative success of various alcohol policies in preventing youth access to alcohol. One session was devoted to a roundtable discussion among young people aged 10 to 15, who expressed their views on why kids drink and the best ways to intervene. Based on comments from attendees, the conference was highly successful in increasing their understanding of the dimensions of the problem and the urgent need to make this issue a national priority. The conference drew substantial national and local media coverage.
The Acting Director of the National Institutes of Health, Dr. Ruth Kirschstein, addressed a Congressional reception held in conjunction with the conference. In her remarks, she noted that the Governors' spouses are powerful forces within their states for motivating and building coalitions and drawing the public's attention to the important social and health issues that involve our children, and therefore our families, our communities, and the entire Nation. She stressed the decisive role that science can play in policy development, stating that NIAAA research served as the basis for the passage of the 1984 Federal Uniform Drinking Age Act, raising the minimum drinking age to 21 and now the law in all 50 states. She also cited research support for the enactment of zero-tolerance laws in a growing number of states and the current investigation of the tradeoffs involved in moderate alcohol consumption over the life span. She concluded her remarks with the observation that children are this country's greatest resource and pledged the continuing support of the National Institutes of Health to this powerful public-private partnership to protect the health of our youth. Senators Ted Stevens (Alaska), George Voinovich (Ohio), and Arlen Specter (Pennsylvania) attended the reception.
A short video introducing the problem of early onset alcohol use was also unveiled at the March conference. It poses and answers three questions: Why do children drink? Why do we care? What should we do? It was very enthusiastically received. Multiple copies will be sent to participating states to be used as an educational tool for adult lay audiences. The conference concluded with a formal pledge signing ceremony in which the First Ladies signaled their ongoing commitment to this campaign.
Next Steps Leading Up to Phase II
State Activities. Many of the participating First Ladies are moving ahead with activities in their states. Ms. Cayetano (Hawaii), Ms. Ridge (Pennsylvania), Ms. Taft (Ohio), and Ms. Kitzhaber (Oregon) have each held formal press kickoffs for the initiative in their states. Seven have developed public service announcements for state-wide distribution. A number of spouses are establishing links between their home pages and other initiative-related Website and arranging for initiative video streaming. In addition, opportunities for national speaking engagements for the spouses are being identified to provide greater exposure for the initiative around the country.
Regional Meetings. Because the national conference in March was so successful in informing and motivating the audience, regional meetings are currently being planned for the fall at three sites across the country-the northwest, the Midwest, and the east coast-to provide this opportunity for all of the spouses who have joined the Leadership initiative. Each meeting will include brief presentations by nationally recognized scientists regarding the latest findings in key areas of research on children and alcohol. Media training will be provided to assist the spouses in interacting with the media on this topic. The spouses will also have a chance to discuss Phase II activities and to exchange information and ideas about ways to create and sustain awareness of the issue within the states and nationally.
Presentations at National Meetings. The Leadership initiative is included on the agendas of the Western Governors meeting to be held in June and the National Governors Association (NGA) meeting and the American Bar Association meeting, both to be held in July. A video containing excerpts from all the activities of the initiative to date is being prepared for the NGA to encourage the remaining spouses to support this initiative and make it a truly national effort, demonstrate the momentum surrounding the initiative, provide ideas to the spouses about how they can use their energies for this effort, and lay out some of the critical national statistics on alcohol use by children between 9-15 years of age that prompted the initiative. Finally, an exhibit will be set up at the June meeting of the Research Society on Alcoholism to inform alcohol researchers about the goals of the Leadership initiative and the role that science-based prevention strategies will play in it. The researchers will also be encouraged to reach out to the spouses in their states and invite them to tour their laboratories.
Major Elements of Phase II
Prevention Handbook. Among the materials provided to participants at the March conference was a four-page pamphlet entitled "Preventing Alcohol Use in Late Childhood and Early Adolescence: Science-Based Strategies." This document, which outlines interventions shown to be effective in preventing underage drinking, was prepared as background for the conference by a panel of alcohol prevention researchers, among them Council members Harold Holder and Marilyn Aguirre-Molina. The panel is now preparing a much more comprehensive handbook of science-based strategies for the prevention of alcohol use in the 9-15 age group to assist policy makers, practitioners, and community leaders in determining the most appropriate approaches to prevention of underage drinking in their communities. Multiple copies of the pamphlet and the handbook will be sent to state alcohol and drug abuse directors across the country to be shared with appropriate agencies and organizations within their states.
Task Forces. Five task forces-special events, media outreach, social environment, minority concerns, and research-are being established to focus efforts on specific aspects of the initiative's objectives. Ideas for these taskforces are currently being considered-for example, arranging for the issuance of a value-added stamp designated for alcohol research, conducting media tours to work with the media on the portrayal of underage alcohol use, and setting up a speakers bureau of alcohol researchers to support the spouses' educational efforts. The minority concerns and research task forces will primarily involve activities leading to increased research on alcohol use by older children and young adolescents, minority differences in underage drinking, and effective interventions for youth in various age, gender, geographic, socioeconomic, and population groups.
Other Activities. Phase II plans also include the development of public service announcements for national distribution, a Website dedicated to activities relevant to the Leadership initiative, a national conference to establish the role of state alcohol and drug abuse directors in the initiative, and a final national conference as the capstone of Phase II. Print materials developed for the initiative will continue to be updated, reprinted, and widely distributed.
On May 15, 2000, the Department of Health and Human Services released the Report on Carcinogens. This report, for the first time, listed alcohol as a "known human carcinogen." The Report summary states:
consumption of alcoholic beverages is causally related to cancers of the mouth, pharynx, larynx, and esophagus, and goes on to say that studies indicate that the risk is most pronounced among smokers and at the highest levels of consumption. The Report says that the effect of a given level of alcoholic beverage intake on cancers of the head and neck is influenced by other factors, especially smoking, but that smoking does not explain the increased cancer hazard associated with alcoholic beverage consumption.
The Report also states that there is evidence that suggests a link between alcoholic beverage consumption and cancer of the liver and breast.
The Report on Carcinogens was prepared by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), a part of the National Institutes of Health. NIAAA staff provided information related to alcohol consumption to NIEHS for their use in preparing questions and answers on alcohol consumption. The report is available in .pdf format at the following NIEHS Website: https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20080916090626/http://ehis.niehs.nih.gov/roc/toc9.html.
Dietary Guidelines for Americans (U.S. Departments of Agriculture and Health and Human Services) |
OPLPL, through Patricia Brown, has been monitoring the process and development of the new Dietary Guidelines for Americans for the Year 2000. The Guideline, which was released by the Department of Agriculture at the National Nutrition Summit, May 30-31, 2000. (The lead alternates between the Departments of Agriculture and Health and Human Services each five-year period. As Council may recall, the 1995 Guideline for alcohol was, "If you drink alcoholic beverages, do so in moderation." Advisory Committee member Meir Stampfer, M.D., Dr.P.H. (Professor & Chair, Department of Nutrition Sciences, Professor of Medicine, University of Alabama at Birmingham) had the lead in developing the alcohol guideline for the Year 2000 edition.
NIAAA staff worked with HHS on language in the alcohol guideline. As previously reported, some though not all, of NIAAA's recommendations were taken by the alcohol subcommittee. The Year 2000 dietary guidelines are available online at: https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20080916090626/http://www.health.gov/dietaryguidelines/.
Council Priorities Subcommittee |
The NIAAA Subcommittee on Research Priorities met on 21 March. Members of the Subcommittee include Drs. Henri Begleiter, Mark Goldman, Harold Holder, Matt McGue, and Carrie Randall, and Mr. Paul Samuels, along with Dr. T.K. Li, a member of the NIH Advisory Committee to the Director, and former Council member Ms. Miggs Woodside. Also attending the meeting from NIAAA were Drs. Enoch Gordis and Mary Dufour, Stephen Long, Acting Executive Officer, Dr. Kenneth Warren, Director of OSA, the Intramural and Extramural Research Division Directors and other members of NIAAA senior staff.
A major function of the Priorities Subcommittee is to examine all of the Extramural Science Advisory Subcommittee (ESAS) Reports arising from the reviews of the eight extramural portfolio areas, to identify cross-cutting issues, and identify research needs and opportunities that are of particular importance when examined in this over-arching perspective. Last year, the Subcommittee considered the ESAS Reports that had been completed to date (Health Services, Alcohol and Pregnancy, Genetics and Neuroscience) and submitted recommendations at the February 1999 Council meeting. The Priorities Subcommittee will consider all eight ESAS portfolio Reports following completion of the Biomedical Consequences Report (which is the last in the series), and will make over-arching recommendations at that time. These recommendations will serve the Institute in its scientific planning process.
While awaiting completion of all eight-portfolio reviews, the Subcommittee is laying the groundwork for integrating its perspectives into the process by which the Institute develops its annual reports on significant research accomplishments, and for contributing concepts and plans for future research initiatives. Mr. Long gave several presentations on the Institute's budget request and how decisions are made, using recommendations from various sources (e.g., Congress, the Council and its subcommittees including ESAS and Priorities, and NIH's Areas of Emphasis). He also discussed a more formal planning and budget process that will seek even more input from outside sources. Since the meeting, the Institute has sought the Subcommittee's perspective on potential research initiatives suggested by the Divisions, and on scientific accomplishments to be reported by the Institute to Congress and the public. As the Subcommittee's recommendations emerge, they will be presented for comment to the full Council.
Subcommittee on College Drinking |
In an effort to address the complex issue of alcohol abuse among college students in a comprehensive, scientific manner, NIAAA's National Advisory Council created a Subcommittee on College Drinking in February, 1998. Comprised of college presidents and alcohol researchers, the subcommittee provides expertise and guidance to NIAAA based upon this unique dialogue among the administrators and scientists. Subcommittee activities are coordinated by Stephen Long, Fred Donodeo, Vivian Faden, and Gayle Boyd. The long-term goal of the subcommittee is to advise NIAAA on research gaps that need to be explored in order to improve campus prevention and treatment programs. A short-term goal is to provide college presidents and researchers with reliable information on the overall quality and effectiveness of current interventions.
As previously noted, the Subcommittee created two distinct panels which focus on specific aspects of college drinking. Each panel is in the process of reviewing and updating the series of commissioned papers and panel reports. The panel reports will then be used to create a final subcommittee report which will be presented to the Full council at the February 2001 meeting and, ultimately, to Dr. Gordis.
The Subcommittee is co-chaired by Rev. Edward A. Malloy, President of the University of Notre Dame and Dr. Mark Goldman, Distinguished Research Professor, University of South Florida.
For more details concerning the Subcommittee on College Drinking ,please see the February Director's Report at https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20080916090626/http://www.niaaa.nih.gov/AboutNIAAA/AdvisoryCouncil/DirectorsReports/dirept2-00.htm.
Substance Abuse Parity in the Federal Employees Health Benefit Program |
NIAAA has been participating in a multi-agency effort led by the Office of the Assistant Secretary for Policy and Evaluation and the Office of Personnel Management to design and conduct a study of the effects of instituting parity for substance abuse and mental health benefits for all insurance carriers within the Federal Employees Health Benefit Program. Geoff Laredo, Director OPLPL has managed interagency collaboration on this project and Dr. Michael Hilton, DCPR, has provided scientific expertise for the study design.
Adolescence and Alcohol: Implications for College Drinking |
Following a one-day symposium entitled "Adolescence and Alcohol, Implications For College Drinking," held in collaboration with the American Psychological Society (APS) and the Academy of Clinical Psychology, NIAAA has received numerous requests for summaries and transcripts. In response to this demand, Fred Donodeo prepared an article summarizing the presentations and discussions of the conference, which was sent to a variety of NIAAA constituency groups. The article has now been published in the newsletters and magazines of four national organizations: American College Health Association, Association of College and University Housing Officers-International, Association of College Unions International, and the National Association of Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Counselors.
Director
Substance Abuse in the 21st Century: Positioning the Nation for Progress
Dr. Gordis participated as member of a panel entitled, " Substance Abuse: Is It All in the Brain?" held as part of this four-day conference sponsored by the National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University (CASA) in conjunction with the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation. Conference participants included representatives from research, the media, business, the entertainment industry, family groups, schools systems, religious institutions, government, and law enforcement. Dr. Gordis was joined on the panel by Floyd E. Bloom, Director, Department of Neuropharmacology, the Scripps Research Institute; Eric J. Nestler, M.D., Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine; and Nora D. Volkow, M.D., Medical department, Brookhaven National Laboratory. William Safire, The New York Times, served as the panel moderator. The Conference was held February 29-March 3 at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library, Simi Valley, California.
"Leadership to Keep Children Alcohol Free National Conference"
Dr. Gordis presented on the prevalence and the overall impact of alcohol abuse and alcoholism on our Nation to an audience which included the First Ladies from a number of states, members of their executive staffs, and representatives from their alcohol-related policy and program offices. (See page 4 for more details on the "Leadership to Keep Children Alcohol Free" and the National Conference).
Thirty-first Annual Medical-Scientific Conference of the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM)
A member of the Conference planning committee, Dr. Gordis participated in a variety of activities at the annual ASAM Conference including: providing remarks, "Remembering Dr. Ruth Fox" and, as a faculty member, presenting a lecture at the Ruth Fox Course for Physicians entitled, "Treating Alcohol Dependence: New Research, New Solutions"; providing a report on current NIAAA activities as a part of the Opening Ceremonies; co- organizer, along with Dr. Thomas Kresina, Chief, Biomedical Research Branch, NIAAA, of the NIAAA-sponsored Symposium, "Alcohol-induced Toxicity: Implications for Treatment of Alcoholism;" and organizer of the NIAAA-ASAM Symposium, "Clinical Insight from Animal Models. The ASAM Conference was held April 13-16 in Chicago, Illinois.
Wake Forest University Annual Symposium
As visiting scholar, Dr. Gordis gave an invited plenary address, "Promise of Alcohol Research for Treatment and Prevention," at the Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center's annual symposium in recognition of National Science and Technology Week. Past speakers at this annual event have included Drs. Albert Sabin, Nancy Jaax, Anthony Fauci, John Ruffin and Kenneth Olden. The annual symposium was held April 25-26.
Annual Convention of the American Psychiatric Association (APA)
Dr. Gordis presented a lecture at the Annual APA Convention entitled, "Alcohol Research: Achievements and Promise. He also was honored to receive a Special Presidential Commendation from the APA for "recognition of your contributions and public advocacy for basic and clinical research, and clinical practice through your accomplishments as director of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism." During the course of the Convention, Dr. Gordis met with Bruce Dold, Deputy Editorial Page Editor, The Chicago Tribune, to discuss alcohol-related issues. The APA Convention was help May 14-16 in Chicago, Illinois.
Oscar A. Parsons Summer Institute on Substance-related Disorders: Skill Building for a New Millennium
Dr. Gordis delivered an invited Keynote Address on the promise of research for treatment and prevention at this inaugural event sponsored by the Oklahoma Center for Alcohol- & Drug-related Studies. the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center. The Summer Institute was held May 22-24 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
Deputy Director
Alcohol Research in Emergency Departments
Dr. Mary Dufour represented NIAAA at a meeting of the Conference Steering Committee, Alcohol Research in Emergency Departments. The goal of the conference, which was held June 2 in Washington, DC, is to encourage research designed to improve identification and intervention for emergency depart patients with alcohol problems. Researchers, practitioners and other stakeholders will summarize the current status of clinical practice and research in the filed, identify critical research gaps and develop a research agenda intended to advance our knowledge and improve practice in the field.
Office of Collaborative Research Activities |
The mission of the Office of Collaborative Research Activities (OCRA) is to: (a) foster collaboration activities with other NIH Institutes, governmental agencies, and other organizations interested in alcohol research; (b) provide momentum and guidance to projects in collaboration with appropriate program administrators or subject matter experts in other NIAAA offices or divisions; (c) coordinate and administer collaborative international research programs and scientific exchanges; and (d) develop and coordinate science education projects and initiatives.
Domestic Collaborative Research Activities
Interagency Coordinating Committee on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome - An Update
Currently, the Interagency Coordinating Committee (ICC) on FAS consists of representatives from ten government organizations, agencies, and Institutes. Three cabinet departments are represented: Health and Human Services, Education and Justice. The meetings are attended by representatives of advocacy groups and state health departments. Drs. Mary Dufour and Faye Calhoun chair the committee. Activities since February Council include the following:
- An Executive Session of the ICCFAS was held on February 22. Agencies and organizations reported on progress made since the last report to Congress and plans for updating the report were made.
- On June 19, the Department of Education and the NIAAA will co-sponsor a working group meeting to develop additional action items for the next report to Congress of the ICCFAS. These will address issues related to the special needs of FAS and ARND children (ages 0-8) and their families. The working group will include educators, school psychologists and administrators as well as representatives from several ICCFAS organizations.
- A workshop entitled "Early Childhood Neurobehavioral Assessment for the Differential Diagnosis of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and Alcohol-Related Neurological Disorder" was held on March 8-10, 2000 at the Bethesda Marriott. Experts presented research findings and techniques used to study a number of teratogenic agents and developmental disorders. The workshop was well attended and progress has been made in sharpening and distinguishing the diagnosis for ARND. A summary report is being prepared.
- On May 24, Drs Faye Calhoun and Kenneth Warren provided leadership to an effort by the Minnesota Organization on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome to develop and test the outcomes of a curriculum to transfer research to practice for criminal justice professionals in Minnesota. The meeting was held in a juvenile detention center which will be participating in the project. The committee to design the curriculum and plan the project includes lawyers, judges and corrections professionals.
Alcohol and Nutrition: The Energy Value of Alcohol in the Diets of Alcoholics
This collaborative research study made use of the unique room-sized calorimetric facilities at the Diet and Human Performance Laboratory of the Human Nutrition Research Center (Agriculture Research Service, USDA) in Beltsville, MD to assess the nutritional interaction between alcohol and the energy derived from food. The Behavioral Pharmacology Research Unit, Department of Psychiatry at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine had the primary responsibility for subject recruitment and clinical care during the study. The data collection phase of the study is now complete and most of the data analysis has been completed. A manuscript describing the results is in preparation for submission to a peer-reviewed journal. This work has been conducted under an interagency agreement between the NIAAA and the Agriculture Research Service of the USDA, and is coordinated by Dr. Tom Gentry. These results will be presented at the RSA meeting in Denver.
Report on the In vivo Pharmacokinetics of Alcohol Workshop
A report on the workshop on the In vivo Pharmacokinetics of Alcohol was published in the April issue of Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research. The report includes an overview of the meeting as well as individual contributions from each of the fifteen speakers. The meeting, believed to be the first specifically on the topic of alcohol pharmacokinetics, provided a variety of perspectives on the absorption, distribution and elimination of alcohol, and the methodologies used to assess in vivo alcohol pharmacokinetics. Topics include: a) A historical overview of alcohol pharmacokinetics research, b) Alcohol absorption, bioavailability and first-pass metabolism, c) The effect of food and beverage alcohol concentration on alcohol absorption and elimination, d) Distribution dynamics and the significance of various sites of sampling, e) Pharmacokinetics issues in experimental design and forensics, f) Gender and ethnic differences in alcohol pharmacokinetics, and g) Innovative new techniques, including the use of physiologically-based pharmacokinetics (PBPK) modeling. This report was edited by Dr. Tom Gentry.
Collaborative Curriculum Development Project with the NIH Office of Science Education for Middle Schools-An Update
An intensive, two-day workshop was held May 11-12 in the Colorado Springs headquarters of Biological Sciences Curriculum Study (BSCS), the contractor supporting the NIH Office of Science Education (OSE) and NIAAA in developing a science education curriculum supplement titled "Understanding Alcohol: Separating Fact from Fiction". The workshop brought together three scientific advisors, a consulting curriculum specialist, a seventh-grade master teacher, and staff from OSE, NIAAA, and BSCS to develop a logical sequence of five class periods and to outline the scientific and pedagogic content of each. A report of the workshop will be developed by BSCS and presented to OSE and NIAAA in June for review and comment, to be followed by a writers' conference in July to flesh out the emerging outline. Dorothea de Zafra, Science Education Program Coordinator, represented NIAAA at the May workshop.
The NIAAA proposal is one of nine funded to date in the NIH Curriculum Supplement Series. The first three supplements, which are all designed for the high school level, are published and available. Information about this series can be obtained at https://webarchive.library.unt.edu/eot2008/20080916090626/http://science-education.nih.gov/supplements. Products resulting from the third development cycle, which includes NIAAA, will be available in 2001. Overall objectives for the series include promoting the visibility and missions of the NIH and respective Institutes, improving the quality of science teaching nationwide, deepening students' understanding of the importance of research to advances in medicine and health, and providing students with grade-appropriate opportunities to learn and apply inquiry and critical-thinking skills to discover solutions to a wide range of problems. It was decided by consensus that the NIAAA supplement will be designed for grades seven and eight, with adaptation potential for grades six and nine. Instruction will be centered around a print component, with an Internet component serving as a rich interactive element of the instructional experience. The supplements are and will be distributed free of charge, but, because teachers have a crowded syllabus, the supplements must integrate well into required science education coursework while focusing on unique features: i.e., medical topics relevant to students' lives, and inquiry-based instruction.
BSCS pioneered the "5E" learning model in the late 1980's, which is being used in the NIH Curriculum Supplement Series. The 5E concepts are: Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate, and Evaluate. During the May workshop consensus was reached that drinking and driving will be the "Engage" focus of the NIAAA supplement, to stimulate student interest in learning about the science of alcohol. Conceptual understanding will then be developed, focusing primarily on alcohol's effects on the brain and cognition.
The three science advisors who participated in the workshop were all very enthusiastic and proposed leadership roles for themselves, the Alcohol Research Centers, and the Research Society on Alcoholism in teacher-training and implementation promotion when the curriculum supplement is ready for release. The three advisors are: Dr. Gene Erwin of the University of Colorado Alcohol Research Center; Dr. Robert Zucker, Director, University of Michigan Alcohol Research Center, and Dr. Robert Voas of the Public Services Research Institute.
Studying Spirituality and Alcohol-An Update
Over 70 applications were received in response to the RFA on Studying Spirituality and Alcohol co-sponsored with the Fetzer Institute in Kalamazoo, Michigan. The RFA requested projects to better understand the role of religiousness and spirituality in the prevention and treatment of and recovery from alcoholism and alcohol-related diseases.
Collaborative Minority Institution Alcohol Research Development Activities: An Update
- For the fifth year NIAAA has been highly successful in developing projects for co-funding and collaboration with the NIH Office of Research on Minority Health (ORMH). Co-funding for several grants to study alcohol issues in specific minority populations was obtained from ORMH. NIAAA presented a token of appreciation to the Director of ORMH on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of this office. Progress reviews were held at each of the three Collaborative Minority Alcohol Research Development Programs (Howard University School of Medicine, Charles Drew Medical School and North Carolina Central University). As detailed in previous reports to Council, several successful collaborations with expert alcohol research scientists have developed at each institution.
- There is a new initiative to build collaborations between alcohol research scientists and alcohol treatment professionals and clinicians in minority serving institutions. A workshop to provide an opportunity for orientation and an exchange of information between treatment professionals and researchers was held the first week in May, 2000. It was attended by faculty from U. Alaska, U. Hawaii, Howard University, Drew Medical School, Meharry Medical School, Colorado State U., U. South Carolina, U. Connecticut and U. Texas at San Antonio. A representative of American Indian alcohol treatment professional was also in attendance.
- NIAAA is developing a strategic plan to address health disparities related to alcohol abuse and alcoholism in minority populations.
International Research and Training Program
The international research and training program continues to focus on development of opportunities for research collaboration between foreign investigators and alcohol researchers in the United States.
Italy
Peggy Murray represented the National Institutes of Health at the signing of the agreement between the governments of Italy and the United States for scientific and technological cooperation which took place April 13-14 in Rome, Italy. Alcohol research was formally adopted into the agenda for research on health as part of this agreement. While in Rome, Ms. Murray met with the Director of the Italian Instituto Superiore Di Santa' (ISS), and finalized the Exchange of Letters between that Institute and NIAAA for cooperation in alcohol research. Areas of cooperation include moderate alcohol consumption and cardiovascular disease; alcohol and health in aging populations; prevention, early diagnosis and treatment of alcohol-use disorders in primary care settings; evaluation of treatment for alcohol use disorders; medical education and training regarding alcohol-use disorders for medical students, residents, and post-graduate physicians; genetics of alcoholism; collaborative work on the development of standardized measures for global alcohol epidemiological research; and alcohol and youth.
Russia
Partners in Prevention, a research initiative between the University of Minnesota School of Public Health and two Russian investigators, was highlighted at the annual scientific symposium of the Civilian Research and Development Foundation (CRDF) which was held in Moscow May 15 and 16. This project is co-funded by NIAAA and CRDF. It is implementing and evaluating a prevention program for Russian pre adolescents. Peggy Murray traveled to Moscow for the symposium and presentation of project research findings. While in Russia, Ms. Murray also finalized plans with Russian child health research experts on collaborative studies of children exposed to alcohol prenatally. This will be led by Dr. Edward Riley, Director, San Diego State University, Center for Behavioral Teratology.
Screening and Early Intervention in Primary Care Settings
- March 8-9, NIAAA and the Agency for Health Care Research and Quality (AHRQ) co-sponsored a meeting entitled, "The Expanding Role of Primary Care in the Prevention and Treatment of Alcohol Use disorders: Research and Policy Issues." Additional support was provided by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration and the Health Resources and Services Administration. This meeting brought together researchers, policy makers, health care providers, insurance and managed care providers, and medical education professionals to determine ways to refocus research and policy agendas to facilitate change in the primary health care delivery system. These changes will incorporate proven methods on screening, assessment, and office-based treatment as an integral part of quality primary health services and improve medical education to better prepare physicians for this expanded role.
- As part of Alcohol Awareness Month on April 11, NIAAA and Providence Hospital of Washington D.C. worked together to conduct a continuing medical education course for physicians and nurses practicing in Washington area hospitals and clinics. The course focused on best practices for screening, primary care intervention, and alcohol interactions with commonly prescribed medications.
Staff Activities
Dr. Gentry edited and contributed the introduction to a 29-page report on the NIAAA-sponsored "Workshop on the In Vivo Pharmacokinetics of Alcohol: Determinants and Analysis of Blood Alcohol Concentration after Social Drinking" which included 14 separate brief summaries and was published in the April, 2000 issue of Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research. One of these summaries "Effect of Food on the Pharmacokinetics of Alcohol Absorption" was also contributed by Dr. Gentry.
Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP)
OPLPL, through Geoff Laredo, continues in its role as Institute liaison with policy staff at NIH, DHHS, other Executive Branch agencies, and ONDCP in matters related to the National Drug Control Strategy. This is accomplished through both formal and informal mechanisms, including Geoff's seat on ONDCP's Staff Agency Representatives Committee, which provides input and support to the Interagency Demand Reduction Workgroup. This function includes the facilitation of NIAAA's "drug budget" (that portion of the budget pertaining to underage use of alcohol, which is included in the National Drug Control Budget) submission.
The President's 2000 National Drug Control Strategy has been published, and copies will be made available to all interested Council members.
Constituency Development and Cooperation
NIAAA maintains an active program of both formal and informal outreach to and cooperation with organizations whose interests involve wholly or in part alcohol-related programs and activities. This program, carried out principally through the Office of Policy, Legislation, and Public Liaison, is designed to help increase exposure of non-science specific audiences to alcohol research and of scientific audiences to non-research activities that bear on our common concern-reducing the tremendous impact of alcohol-related problems. An annual plan of specific, formal collaborations with outside groups serves as the basis of much of this activity. The following is a description of NIAAA's ongoing activities in this area.
Council Liaison Representative Organizations
OPLPL, primarily through Geoff Laredo, is responsible for liaison activities as they relate to Council meetings (and associated "liaison group meetings"). Currently, over 400 outside groups comprise our contact list, and we share information on a regular basis. Liaison representatives meet informally with NIAAA Director Dr. Enoch Gordis and senior staff following the adjournment of Council meetings. Dozens of groups have been able to join us at these meetings since we expanded NIAAA's outreach effort. In addition, we are in constant communication with a large number of these groups on a variety of issues, as they arise.
Collaborations with Outside Organizations
Activities since the last Council meeting, and those planned throughout FY2000, include:
February-March 2000
The National Center on Addiction and Substance Abuse at Columbia University. CASA organized a conference, "Substance Abuse in the 21st Century," February 29-March 3. NIAAA cosponsored this event, and Dr. Gordis spoke as part of an excellent panel that explored "Substance Abuse: Is it all in the Brain?" Experts from around the United States discussed and evaluated the responsibility of key segments of our society regarding alcohol and other drug issues. Each panel throughout the conference assessed how well our nation is poised to address alcohol and other drug issues, and speakers made recommendations for achieving various goals.
April 2000
Association of Addiction Providers of New York State. Continuing the Institute's effort to move research into practice, NIAAA sponsored a full day research symposium at the 2000 meeting of the AAPNY. This symposium was extremely well received, and was planned and conducted in close collaboration with the national office of the Addiction Technology Transfer Centers, through its research to practice committee, as well as the Northeast Regional ATTC (NY). The use of pharmacotherapies was a focus of the day's program.
May 2000
American Psychiatric Association. NIAAA worked with the APA to create a special alcohol series as part of APA's annual convention. The series was comprised of symposia, workshops, and special lectures. Dr. Gordis provided remarks on the state of alcohol research today, and the role of psychiatrists in both research and treatment of patients. Dr. Gordis also received a special presidential commendation from APA President Dr. Allan Tasman. Overall, the series was a great success. The next phase of this project is the production of a special issue of the American Journal on Addictions, the journal of the American Academy of Addiction Psychiatry.
June 2000
American Psychological Society. As in past years, NIAAA will cosponsor with the APS a pre-conference research symposium. This year's excellent program provides a focus on co-occurring alcohol and mental illness issues, and will be chaired by Dr. Ken Sher.
National Association of Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Counselors. NIAAA will continue to work with NAADAC to bring science to bear on the practice of alcohol abuse and alcoholism counseling. In a fashion similar to AAPNY, the Institute is cosponsoring the group's annual meeting by supporting a pre-conference research symposium on using medications in treating patients with alcoholism. This symposium has been planned in close collaboration with NAADAC and the national office of the Addiction Technology Transfer Centers, through its research to practice committee.
August 2000
American Psychological Association. NIAAA continues to support efforts to include alcohol research issues on the agenda of the annual APA convention. This year, the Institute is working with the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment to cosponsor several working sessions on aspects of treating alcohol and drug addiction. Dr. Harold Perl of DCPR has the programmatic lead on this project.
September - October 2000
Mothers Against Drunk Driving NIAAA and MADD staff have continued to build a strong relationship, to further inject the science of alcohol research into the work of the organization. NIAAA will again sponsor a research symposium at MADD's annual convention (Washington, D.C.), to help members understand the science behind their concerns. NIAAA is also a cosponsor of the upcoming Youth Summit 2000 (October 2000; Washington, D.C.).
"Research to Practice" Efforts
New York Collaboration, Phase II. NIAAA continues its work with the New York State Office of Substance Abuse Services, the Association of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Providers of New York, and CSAT on moving ahead on phase II of this project - the Researcher in Residence Program. Dr. Mike Hilton of DCPR has the programmatic lead on this project, and has been working with the programs and researchers as they have developed and (continue to) implement their specific efforts. Dr. Hilton will be visiting all of the sites and writing a report summarizing the project overall, and how successfully each program was able to implement its chosen "intervention."
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. Discussions are underway to determine the exact nature of the phase II activities, and expectations are that a process similar to that underway in New York will be implemented in North Carolina. Several activities are under discussion for FY 2001. These will be included in the Director's Report to Council in September, 2000.
Office of Scientific Affairs |
Extramural Research Activities
- The NIAAA Council Subcommittee for the Review of the Treatment Portfolio met on November 8-9, 1999. Co-Chairs Drs. Mary McCaul and Peter Monti will present the resulting report at this Council meeting.
- The NIAAA Council Subcommittee for the Review of the Biomedical Portfolio chaired by Dr. D. Montgomery Bissell met on May 2-3, 2000.
Extramural Project Review Branch
- For this Council meeting, the Branch staff have run 15 review meetings, for a total of 103 applications. Review committees in the Center for Scientific Review evaluated 147 applications for this Council meeting.
- Dr. Jules Selden left the Branch in April to take a position in the pharmaceutical industry. As a result, review of PAS-99-156, "Peptide Regulation of Alcohol Intake," will be delayed until the September Council.
- All site visits for applications responding to RFA-99-005, "Alcohol Research Centers," have been completed and reviews for PAS-99-155, "Hepatitis C Infection and Alcoholic Liver Disease," were completed May 19, 2000. These summary statements will be considered at the September 13-14 Council meeting.
- In addition to standard review activities for unsolicited applications, several additional review committee activities have already started for the September Council.
RFA:AA-99-005 |
Alcohol Research Center Grants |
Dr. Suddendorf |
RFA:AA-00-001 |
Targeted Mutations to Study Ethanol-Related Behaviors |
Dr. Suddendorf |
RFA:AA-00-002 |
Studying Spirituality and Alcohol |
Dr. Gentry |
Staff Activities
- Ms. Elsie Taylor made a presentation on grantsmanship at a technical assistance workshop for social workers.
- Dr. Mark Green made a presentation about the NIH Peer Review Process at the meeting of the American Psychiatric Association in Chicago.
Scientific Communications Branch
Alcohol Research & Health
- Since the last Council meeting, the Alcohol Research & Health issue entitled "Alcohol and Stress" has been printed and distributed. Work continues on topics focusing on tobacco, violence, animal models, and chronobiology.
- The Alcohol Research & Health Editorial Advisory Board met on May 8. A number of issues were discussed including promotion and dissemination of the journal as well as suggested topics and author for future issues.
Alcohol Health & Research World, NIAAA's quarterly, peer-reviewed journal, is available from the Government Printing Office at a subscription rate of $19 per year. Further information on subscribing may be obtained by contacting the Scientific Communications Branch at 301/443-3860. Tables of contents and the "In This Issue" section are available at www.niaaa.nih.gov/Publications/AlcoholResearch. |
Alcohol Alert
The issue of Alcohol Alert "Imaging and Alcohol: A Window on the Brain" was printed and distributed. Work is continuing on the next issue which focuses on new technologies.
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 47 Alerts are available on NIAAA's World-wide Web site at www.niaaa.nih/publications/AlcoholAlerts. |
Report to Congress on Alcohol and Health
The Tenth Special Report to the U. S. Congress on Alcohol and Health was submitted to NIH for review on February 1 and to HHS on March 1 for final approval by the Secretary.
Other Publications
- Research Monograph #35 Neuroscience and Behavioral Research is being printed and will be available soon. Work continues on Research Monograph #36 Ethanol and Intracellular Signaling: From Molecules to Behavior and Research Monograph #37 Alcohol Epidemiology of Small Geographic Areas.
- The research-based booklet, Make a Difference: Talk to Your Child About Alcohol, has been very well received. Nearly 200,000 copies have been distributed thus far. NIAAA printed an additional 500,000 copies for distribution at Kmart Kids Race Against Drugs. This program will reach 700,000 children during its 2000 tour, which visits 90 cities and makes 665 stops during the 37-week season. The reprinted booklets featured NIAAA, KMart, and MADD's logo on the back cover.
The Spanish-language version of the booklet is being reviewed and printed copies will be available in the fall.
Public Service Announcements
NIAAA in collaboration with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration is developing two television and two radio public service announcements on underage drinking. A kick-off meeting with the subcontractor's staff and representatives from NIAAA and SAMHSA was held on March 29. Creative message "briefs" were developed and approved by NIAAA and SAMHSA staff.
Public Education Campaign on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS)
Work continues on developing "taglines" and text for posters and ads that will be used on public transit. These materials will be used in this public education campaign targeting African-American women of child-bearing age in Washington, DC. Plans are to launch the campaign during Alcohol Awareness Month in April 2001.
Media Activities
- ABC featured a 1-hour special edition of its news program, 20/20, entitled, "The Truth About Drinking" on Thursday, June 7, 10:00 - 11:00 pm EDT. Drs. Gordis and Dan Hommer, Acting Chief, Laboratory of Clinical Studies, provided interviews for the broadcast. NIAAA researchers across the country contributed both interviews and background assistance.
- This year's Pulitzer Prize for explanatory journalism was awarded to Eric Newhouse, Great Falls (Montana) Tribune, for his year-long series "Alcohol: Cradle to Grave." The series, which described alcohol problems in Montana, received assistance from NIAAA and other alcohol field components.
- On May 15, Dr. Gordis met with editors of the Chicago Tribune at their invitation. Among topics discussed were the relevance of science to social policy, fetal alcohol syndrome, the Leadership to Keep Children Alcohol Free initiative, neuroscience, genetics, and treatment and prevention research.
- Nicole Foy, a reporter with the San Antonio Express-News, spent three weeks at NIAAA as a Knight Center Medical Science Journalism Fellow. She pursued her interest in the genetics of alcoholism under the guidance of Jeffrey Long, Ph.D., Laboratory of Neurogenetics and members of that laboratory and other laboratories within the Division of Intramural Clinical and Biological Research.
- NIAAA has issued five news advisories: Researchers Identify Alcohol Antagonists in Neuronal Cells, NIAAA Launches National Initiative to Prevent Underage Drinking, National Alcohol Screening Day -- a National Wake-Up Call, Researchers Link PKA to Voluntary Alcohol Consumption and Alcohol Effects, and Stress Hormone Linked to Increased Alcohol Consumption in Animal Models. All may be viewed by visiting NIAAA's Website.
Division of Basic Research |
Request for Applications (RFAs) and Program Announcements
Alcohol and Sleep-RFA: AA-00-005
Areas of potential interest to the sleep and circadian research community include neural mechanisms of alcohol-induced sleep disturbances, persistent poor sleep as a risk marker for development of alcoholism in adolescents and non-alcoholic young adults, sleep disorders as a predictor of relapse in abstinent alcoholics, and the health consequences of alcohol's disruptive effects on sleep. Application Receipt Date: September 14, 2000
Contacts: Ellen Witt, Ph.D., Neuroscience and Behavioral Research Branch, DBR
301-443-6545; ewitt@willco.niaaa.nih.gov
Joanne Fertig, Ph.D., Treatment Research Branch, DCPR
301- 443-0635; jfertig@willco.niaaa.nih.gov
"Microarray-Based Research on Alcohol's Effects on Behavior, Nervous System Function, and Organ Pathophysiology" - RFA: AA-00-004
Research project grants for the study of ethanol's effects on behavior, nervous system function, and organ pathophysiology using emerging microarray technology. NIAAA also encourages the formation of multidisciplinary teams of investigators drawing from neuroscience, genetics, molecular biology, biochemistry, behavioral science, bioengineering, and computational biology for this purpose. NIAAA anticipates that such studies will aid in the identification of genes and gene products mediating neurobiological and behavioral changes and tissue damage induced by acute and chronic exposure to ethanol, thereby providing new targets for the development of medications for prevention and treatment of alcoholism and the biomedical consequences of alcohol abuse.
Contact: Robert Karp, Program Director for Genetics, DBR
301-443-2239: bkarp@willco.niaaa.nih.gov
Staff Activities
- Dr. Laurie Foudin chaired a session and led a break-out discussion group at the NIAAA-sponsored workshop on "Early Neurobehavioral Assessment for the Differential Diagnosis of Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and Alcohol-Related Neurodevelopmental Disorder," which was held March 8-10 in Bethesda, MD.
- Dr. Antonio Noronha co-edited a NIAAA Research Monograph (#34) entitled Review of NIAAA's Neuroscience and Behavioral Research Portfolio.
- Dr. Antonio Noronha was an invited participant in a conference entitled "Neurobiology of Addiction, 2000"organized by the University of Texas and the Waggoner Center for Alcohol and Addiction Research in Austin, Texas, March 24-26, 2000. He actively participated in the discussions on mesolimbic dopamine function and its involvement in dependence as well as synaptic plasticity and its role in the addiction process.
- Raye Litton of DCPR and Walter Hunt in DBR organized a "Workshop on the Role of Kindling in Alcohol Withdrawal and Neurotoxicity." The workshop was held on April 4-5, 2000, in Bethesda, Maryland.
- Dr. Leslie Isaki gave a presentation on NIH Funding Mechanisms and the NIAAA Trauma Research program to the 2000 Young Surgical Investigators Conference in Chantilly, VA. The meeting was held on March 11-13 and was sponsored by the American College of Surgeons.
- Thomas Kresina organized the conference entitled "Alcohol Use and HIV Pharmacotherapy" April 26-28, 2000 at the Natcher Conference Center. The conference was co-sponsored by the Office of AIDS Research, NIH and the HIV/AIDS Bureau, Health Resources and Services Administration.
- Dr. Zakhari gave the opening remarks at the Workshop on the Role of Kindling in Alcohol Withdrawal and Neurotoxicity, on April 4-5, 2000, in Bethesda, Maryland.
- Dr. Zakhari co-edited NIAAA Research Monograph # 35 on Ethanol and Intracellular Signaling: From Molecules to Behavior. The monograph is the proceedings of a satellite meeting to the International Society for Biological Research on Alcoholism that was held in Lund, Sweden.
- Dr. Zakhari co-edited the proceedings of the International Meeting on Moderate Drinking held in Venice, Italy, October 1999.
Division of Biometry and Epidemiology |
The Division of Biometry and Epidemiology (DBE) Staff along with staff from the Alcohol Epidemiology Data System (AEDS) have participated in the following activities.
Quick Facts
A total of 6 files (tables) in NIAAA's Quick Facts were updated during from February to the end of April 2000. The Quick Facts database is available online through the NIAAA Website.
Other Activities
- NIAAA and staff of NIAAA's Alcohol Epidemiological Data System (AESD) worked closely with staff at the National Center on Health Statistics to finalize the drinking categories in the Basic Module of the redesigned 1997 National Health Interview Survey. Alcohol consumption items will now be asked annually with the NHIS.
- During this period AEDS staff began processing the AUDIT results and other data from the April 1999 Alcohol Screening Day.
New Surveillance Reports
Yi, H.; Stinson, F.S.; Williams, G.D.; and Bertolucci, D. Surveillance Report #49: Trends in Alcohol-Related Fatal Traffic Crashes, United States, 1979-97. Bethesda, MD: NIH/NIAAA, Alcohol Epidemiologic Data System, December 1999.
Whitmore, C.C.; Stinson, F.S.; and Dufour, MC. Surveillance Report #50: Trends in Alcohol-Related Morbidity Among Short-Stay Community Hospital Discharges, United States, 1979-97. Bethesda, MD: NIH/NIAAA, Alcohol Epidemiologic Data System, December 1999.
Nephew, T.M.; Williams, G.D.; Stinson, F.S.; Nguyen, K.; and Dufour, M.C. Surveillance Report #51: Apparent Per Capita Alcohol Consumption: National, State, and Regional Trends, 1977-97. Bethesda, MD: NIH/NIAAA, Alcohol Epidemiologic Data System, December 1999.
Saadatmand, F.; Stinson, F.S.; Grant, B.F.; and Dufour, M.C. Surveillance Report #52: Liver Cirrhosis Mortality in the United States, 1970-96. Bethesda, MD: NIH/NIAAA, Alcohol Epidemiologic Data System, December 1999.
Staff Activities
Gregory Bloss participated in the ImpacTeen Alcohol Expert Panel Meeting at the University of Minnesota on May 17-18, 2000. This panel serves in an advisory capacity to the alcohol component of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation-funded ImpacTeen project, a 5-year study to track State alcohol control legislation and to evaluate the effectiveness of selected policies in reducing alcohol-related mortality and other adverse outcomes. Led by Professor Alexander Wagenaar, the alcohol component of the project is a companion to other ImpacTeen research projects that are examining the effects of public policies at the State and community levels on tobacco and illicit drugs, with coordination across the separate components provided by economic and prevention researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago.
Division of Clinical and Prevention Research |
Office of the Director
Presentations
- Dr. Richard Fuller participated in an American Society of Addiction Medicine working group meeting on developing practice guidelines on pharmacotherapy for alcohol dependence, in Baltimore, Maryland, on April 1-2, 2000. Dr. Fuller presented a review of the acamprosate literature.
- Dr. Fuller organized and moderated a symposium entitled "Frontiers in Alcoholism Treatment/Behavioral Therapies," at the annual meeting of the American Psychiatric Association, May 18, 2000, in Chicago, Illinois.
- Dr. John Allen's presentations include:
"Grand Rounds" at Trippler Army Medical Center, Honolulu, Hawaii; Project Outreach, New York, New York; and St. Peters Alcohol Recovery Center, Albany, New York. The topics of these talks were: the use of assessment instrument results in planning alcoholism treatment; screening and brief intervention for alcohol problems; and efficacy of psychosocial and medicational interventions for alcoholism treatment.
two papers at the First Regional Conference in Alcoholism and Alcohol Pathologies, Rome, Italy. These were: "Efficacy of Psychosocial Interventions for Alcoholism" and "Research on Naltrexone as an Aid to Alcoholism Treatment: An Update. "
two papers at the 31st Annual Scientific Conference of the American Society of Addiction Medicine, Chicago, Illinois: "Use of Biomarkers of Heavy Drinking in Clinical Practice," and "Criteria for Evaluating Current and Future Biomarkers of Alcohol Problems."
a paper entitled, "Biomarkers in Clinical Practice," at the Fourth Annual North Atlantic Regional Medical Conference on Substance Abuse, Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Washington, DC. "Biomarkers to Evaluate Treatment for Alcoholism," a paper presented at the 2000 American Psychiatric Association Annual Meeting, Chicago, Illinois.
Alcohol Assessment Handbook
On May 10 Dr. John Allen and Ms. Veronica Wilson convened the first meeting of the Subject Matter Expert Panel that will revise Assessing Alcohol Problems: A Guide for Clinicians and Researchers, originally published in 1995. The new manual will thoroughly update the earlier version of the manual in terms of content-oriented chapters and also will include instruments that now satisfy inclusion criteria. Additionally, the updated manual will include several entirely new chapters and sections dealing with assessment of adolescents, measurement of co-occurring drug abuse and nicotine dependence, craving, and treatment process measures, as well as including a summary chapter suggesting how instruments can be applied to clinical practice. The manual will be available in hard copy as well as on the NIAAA Website.
Drs. Raye Litten and Joanne Fertig of the Treatment Research Branch will serve as authors of the subject matter chapters dealing with biomarkers.
Publications
Fuller, R.K. & Allen, J.P. (2000). Patients-to-Treatment Matching. In Gerald Zernig, Alois Saria, Martin Kurz & Stephanie O'Malley (Eds). CRC Handbook on Alcoholism, pp. 363-368, CRC Press, Washington, D.C.
Allen, J.P. (2000). Measuring Treatment Process Variables in Alcoholics Anonymous. Journal of Substance Abuse Treatment, 18(3), 227-230.
Allen, J.P., Litten, R.Z., Fertig, J.B. & Sillanaukee, P. (2000). Carbohydrate Deficient Transferrin, Gamma Glutamyl Transferase and Macrocytic Volume as Biomarkers of Alcohol Problems in Women. Alcoholism: Clinical and Experimental Research, 24(4), 492-496.
Treatment Research Branch
Workshop on Alcohol Withdrawal Kindling
Dr. Raye Litten and Dr. Walter Hunt of Division of Basic Science organized the workshop, "Role of Kindling in Alcohol Withdrawal and Neurotoxicity," held on April 4-5, 2000, in Bethesda, Maryland. Thirteen researchers from preclinical and clinical disciplines convened to review the current findings of kindling, discuss clinical and biological issues, and recommend future research directions. Various topics were discussed including the validity of kindling, physiological mechanisms underlying kindling, relationship between multiple alcohol withdrawals and increased susceptibility to neurotoxicity and cognitive impairment, medications to curb or prevent kindling, and contribution of kindling to relapse. The participants plan to publish a report on the proceedings of the meeting.
Presentations
Dr. Raye Litten presented "Review of Biomarkers of Excessive Drinking," at the American Psychiatric Association Annual Meeting, Chicago, Illinois, May 17, 2000.
Dr. Litten presented "Disulfiram: Efficacy, Safety, and Compliance," at the Fourth Annual Addictions Symposium of the North Atlantic Regional Medical Command, Walter Reed Medical Center, Washington, D.C., May 11, 2000.
Dr. Litten presented "Medications Development for Alcohol Treatment,"at Psychiatry Grand Rounds, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, Texas, May 9, 2000.
Dr. Raye Litten presented "Variations in Treatment Approaches," Alcohol Clinical Research Working Group Issues in Health Disparities Research, Bethesda, Maryland, May 4, 2000.
Dr. Litten presented "Pharmacotherapy for Alcoholism," at the NIAAA Alcohol Use and HIV Pharmacotherapy Conference, Bethesda, Maryland, April 27, 2000.
Dr. Litten presented "Emerging Biomarkers of Excessive Drinking," at the American Society of Addiction Medicine (ASAM) 31st Annual Medical-Scientific Conference, Chicago, Illinois, April 15, 2000
Prevention Research Branch
Technical Assistance Workshops
- PRB Chief Dr. Jan Howard has organized and is coordinating a special technical assistance workshop for new potential alcohol-focused researchers in the behavioral and social sciences. The workshop, which is being co-funded by the Office of Research on Minority Health (ORMH) and NIAAA, will be held June 23-24, prior to the meeting of the Research Society on Alcoholism. Participants, who are members of underrepresented racial/ethnic minority groups also will attend at least two days of RSA, where networking opportunities will be provided for them.
- The Prevention Research Branch of NIAAA hosted a technical assistance workshop "Social Work and Alcohol Research" on April 27-28 in Bethesda. The workshop, intended to bring more Social Work researchers into the field of alcohol research, especially minority researchers, was organized by Dr. Suzanne Heurtin-Roberts and Dr. Jan Howard with the assistance of the Institute for the Advancement of Social Work Research. Funding from ORMH made the workshop possible. As a part of this Workshop, Dr. Jan Howard presented an overview of prevention research supported by NIAAA and summarized what is known about effective preventive interventions and Dr. Suzanne Heurtin-Roberts gave a presentation "Qualitative Methods in NIH-Funded Research."
Office of Research on Minority Health (ORMH) Funding
The Prevention Research Branch (PRB) received two funding awards from ORMH for FY 2000:
- $50,000 to continue PRB's technical assistance mentoring program for potential minority applicants
- $ 50,000 supplement to an existing NIAAA prevention research grant to complete a literature review and secondary data analysis concerning the effectiveness of preventive interventions among minority populations.
"Early Career" Researchers
The Prevention Research Branch sponsored the attendance of three "early career" researchers at the annual meetings of the Society for Prevention Research (SPR) in Montreal, Canada June 1-3. The three attendees are members of three different ethnic minority groups, come from different regions of the U.S., and are engaged in different types of alcohol-focused prevention research. Participation in the meetings enabled them to broaden their knowledge of substance abuse research and their network of research colleagues.
Alcohol Research Mentoring System
Six new applicants have been approved under the Alcohol Research Mentoring System () and are in the process of being assigned mentors. The ARMS program, which is under the direction of Dr. Suzanne Heurtin-Roberts, continues to process applications. Increased efforts to market the program, including an NIAAA/NIH announcement released in the fall, appear to have been productive, and applications have noticeably increased since the beginning of the year.
Presentation by Dr. Jessica Warner
On May 19, Dr. Jessica Warner, of the University of Toronto, addressed the Prevention Research Branch and invited guests on findings from her NIAAA-funded study of the Gin Epidemic in 18th century England. Her presentation was titled: The Gin Epidemic and the Prevention of Debauchery. Three papers from this historical/naturalistic study have been published or are in press, and at least three more are under review.
Liaison Activities
- On February 23, Dr. Suzanne Heurtin-Roberts presented on alcohol research issues and funding opportunities at the Substance Abuse program, San Francisco VA Medical Center.
- On March 21-26, Dr. Suzanne Heurtin-Roberts attended the annual meetings of the Society for Applied Anthropology in San Francisco. The meetings were jointly sponsored by the Society for Medical Anthropology, on whose Executive Board Dr. Heurtin-Roberts serves. On March 24 at the meetings, Dr. Heurtin-Roberts (along with Drs. Emeline Otey, NIMH and Sabra Woolley, NCI) held an "Open House" to offer information about the NIH and its various Institutes and to discuss funding opportunities.
- On May 18, Dr. Martin participated in the ImpacTeen Alcohol Expert Panel Meeting meeting sponsored by University of Minnesota School of Public Health in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (See description on page 25).
Staff Activities
- On March 27, Jan Howard participated in a task-focused meeting of behavioral scientists who have been invited to serve as fellows at the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences at Stanford, California. These scientists will spend up to 12 months at the Center exploring the causes, consequences, and prevention of youth behavioral problems associated with drug, tobacco, and alcohol abuse as well as mental illness. Participants at the meeting also included program staff from organizations sponsoring this initiative (The National Institute on Drug Abuse, NIH; Office of Behavioral and Social Science Research, NIH; Office of Applied Research, NIH; the National Cancer Institute, NIH; and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
- The meeting included 29 participants from diverse ethnic backgrounds. Most attendees were faculty but a few were at the post-doctoral and even pre-doctoral level. Speakers from the extramural research community included Dr. Brenda Miller, Dr. Kenneth Sher, Dr. James Moran, Dr. Steven Shinke, and Dr. Phillip Wirtz. From within NIAAA, presentations were also given by Drs. John Allen, Faye Calhoun, Suzanne Heurtin-Roberts, Jan Howard, Harold Perl, Tina Vanderveen, and Ms. Elsie Taylor. In addition, DCPR program staff served as mentors during the breakout sessions where attendees discussed research interests and possible research designs. These mentors included Drs. Gayle Boyd, Kendall Bryant, Michael Hilton, Susan Martin, Margaret Mattson, and Wendy Smith.
- On February 23, Dr. Suzanne Heurtin-Roberts presented on alcohol research issues and funding opportunities at the Substance Abuse program, San Francisco VA Medical Center.
- On March 21-26, Dr. Suzanne Heurtin-Roberts attended the annual meetings of the Society for Applied Anthropology in San Francisco. The meetings were jointly sponsored by the Society for Medical Anthropology, on whose Executive Board Dr. Heurtin-Roberts serves. On March 24 at the meetings, Dr. Heurtin-Roberts (along with Drs. Emeline Otey, NIMH and Sabra Woolley, NCI) held an "Open House" to offer information about the NIH and its various Institutes and to discuss funding opportunities.
- On February 14-15, Dr. Kendall Bryant participated in the 2002 NIH AIDS Research Planning Workshop (Office of AIDS Research) to refine HIV/AIDS behavioral research objectives and to develop cross-cutting minority initiatives. The Workshop was held in Tysons Corner, Virginia.
Presentations
- On March 31, Dr. Gayle Boyd chaired a poster symposium, "New Developments at the National Institutes of Health: Application, Referral and Review, Program Priorities, and Funding Opportunities," at the biannual meeting of the Society for Research on Adolescence, Chicago, Illinois, March 30-April 2, 2000. At this meeting, Dr. Boyd also served as a discussant for a symposium, "Developmental Perspectives on Early Adolescent Substance Abuse: Linking Prevention Research and Practice,"
- On April 26, Dr. Bryant chaired Session 1: "HIV Infection, Alcohol Use, and Adherence" for the NIAAA-sponsored Alcohol Use and HIV Pharmacotherapy Symposium and provided introductory comments for this session. The Workshop was held in Bethesda, Maryland.
- On February 23, Dr. Suzanne Heurtin-Roberts presented "Alcohol and Women's Health: Problems and Prevention Over the Life Course," at Grand Rounds in Psychiatry, the University of California, San Francisco. Dr. Heurtin-Roberts subsequently gave this lecture at a seminar of the Family Practice Residency Program of Georgetown University Medical Center, on April 20, in Washington, DC.
- On February 24, Dr. Suzanne Heurtin-Roberts presented at Grand Rounds in Psychiatry at San Francisco General Hospital. In celebration of Black History Month at the hospital, Dr. Heurtin-Roberts discussed "African American Women and Alcohol: Risks and Protections."
- On February 24, Dr. Suzanne Heurtin-Roberts presented at a seminar of the NIAAA's post-doctoral research training program of the Prevention Research Center in Berkeley. There she discussed "Researching Alcohol-Related Health Disparities" in prevention research, as well as offering an informal didactic on the application and funding process.
- On March 30, in Baltimore, Maryland, Dr. Martin gave a plenary address, "How Far Have Women Come? Reflections on the past 25 Years of Women in Police Work," at the annual conference of the National Center for Women in Policing.
- On May 17, Dr. Martin presented a paper, "Perspectives on the Links Between Alcohol, Crime, and the Criminal Justice System" at the American Psychiatric Association meeting in Chicago, Illinois.
Publications
Boyd, G.M. (2000) Book review: Stephanie Brown and Virginia Lewis. The Alcoholic Family in Recovery: A Developmental Model, New York, Guilford Press, 1999. Addiction, 95(4), 633.
Health Services Research Branch
New Branch Status
In March of Year 2000, the Institute elevated the status of Health Services Research from that of a research program to that of a branch, making it one of three branches within the Division of Clinical and Prevention Research.
Presentations
- On April 4-5, Dr. Michael Hilton presented a Roundtable on Federal Funding at the annual meeting of the HMO Research Network in Atlanta Georgia.
- On March 29, Dr. Michael Hilton gave a presentation on Funding Opportunities for Practitioner Research Networks at the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment Practitioner Research Network Meeting in Falls Church, Virginia.
- On May 28, Dr. Harold Perl gave a presentation entitled, "Research Funding Opportunities from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism" at the 26th Annual Convention of the Association for Behavior Analysis, Washington DC.
Division of Intramural Clinical and Biological Research |
Significant Events
- The Board of Scientific Counselors conducted its review of the Laboratory of Neurogenetics on June1, 2000. the Board's report is expected by September.
- The following DICBR tenure-track opportunities have been announced and the recruitment process continues:
- The Section of Fluorescence Studies (LMBB) is seeking a candidate to establish an independent research program utilizing a biophysical-biochemical approach to study the mechanisms whereby changes in membrane lipid composition or exposure to ethanol alters membrane function.
- The Laboratory of Neurogenetics is seeking a candidate interested in creating and directing a research program in human genomics as it relates to normal function and disease variation in the central nervous system.
- The office of the Director, DICBR is seeking a candidate to develop an independent research program to study the cellular and molecular mechanisms involved in liver regeneration and their role as potential targets for alcohol-induced liver disease.
- Lab Relocation--the NIH office of Space Management expects to finalize a contract in early June 2000 that will acquire a facility with 55,000 sq ft of usable space to permit relocation of the DICBR components currently housed in the FLOW/PARK complex. Building occupancy is slated for January 2002.
DICBR-Sponsored Seminars/Collaborations
02/10/00, Louis Holdstock, University of Chicago, Department of Psychiatry, gave the lecture Individual Differences in Subjective Behavioral and Cognitive Responses to Ethanol
02/24/00, James Bjork, Ph.D., Harris County Psychiatric Center, University of Texas (Houston), Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences gave the seminar Serotonin, Aggression and Impulsivity
04/06/00, Sean O'Connor, M.D., Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Chief, Substance Abuse Treatment Section, Indiana University School of Medicine, gave the lecture Determinants of the Human Response to Alcohol,
04/06/00, National Alcohol Screening Day (a program of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism in partnership with the Center for Substance Abuse Treatment, and Screening for Mental Health)
04/20/00, Georg Winterer, M.D., NIH/NIMH, gave the seminar Electrophysiological Phenotyping in Alcoholics
04/24/00, Christopher Mullins met with LMBB/NMR staff to discuss ongoing collaborative research
04/30-05/06/00, Yoshihiro Kashiwaya gave the lecture Ketones in Neuronal Culture Models of Alzheimer's and Parkinson's Disease at the Rare Disease Workshop and also met with LMBB staff regarding collaborative research
05/11/00, Gary Kaplan, M.D., Professor, Dartmouth College, presented seminar Role of Mid Brain Neurotransmitter Systems on Opioid Actions.
05/22/00, Bin Gao, M.D., Ph.D., Virginia Commonwealth University, presented seminar Signal Transduction During Liver Regeneration: Targeted by Ethanol
05/24/00, Steven Xi Zhan, Ph.D., Holland Laboratory, American Red Cross, presented seminar the Role of Src and Cortactic in the Injury of Endothelial Cells Induced by Reactive Oxygen Species
DICBR Presentations
33rd Annual Winter Conference on Brain Research, Breckenridge CO, 23-28 January 2000
Philip J. Brooks (LNG) participated on a panel entitled DNA Repair in the Nervous System
Forrest F. Weight (LMCN) gave an invited lecture in a session entitled Anesthetic Actions at GABA and Glutamate Synapses
Intramural Research Training Award Fellow Participation in the 1st Annual NIH Postbac Poster Day, Nih Campus, Bethesda MD, 3 March 2000
Khaleda A. Bhuiya, Postbac IRTA (LNG) presented poster DNA End-Joining by Adult Rat Cerebellum Extracts (PJ Brooks, Preceptor)
Aimee Marko, Postbac IRTA (LNG) presented poster Development of Immobilized cDNAs for Screening of Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms in Human Brain (RH Lipsky & D Goldman, Preceptors)
Charity L. McManaman, Postbac IRTA (LNG) presented poster High Throughput Screening and Detection of Human Brain Expressed Single Nucleotide polymorphisms (D Goldman & JG Rudolph, Preceptors)
Jamie A. Rackoff, Predoc IRTA (LCS) presented poster Protein Kinase Activation Alters Cytoplasmic Calpastatin Immunoreactivity In Situ (PB DePetrillo, Preceptor)
Anitza M. San Miguel, Predoc IRTA (LCS) presented poster Differential Effects of Alcohol and Corticosterone on Calcium-Stimulated Neutral Proteases (PB DePetrillo, Preceptor)
Kim Wittenberg, Technical IRTA (LCS/NN) presented poster the Serotonin Metabolite 5-hydroxyindoleacetic Acid (5-HIAA) in the Cerebrospinal Fluid of Rhesus Macaques (Macaca Mulatta): Does it predict alcohol tolerance? (JD Higley, Preceptor)
Laboratory of Membrane Biochemistry and Biophysics Staff Participation at the 31st Annual Meeting of the American Society For Neurochemistry, Chicago, IL 25-29 March 2000
Aneeq Ahmad presented poster titled Effects of Dietary Omega-3 Fatty Acid on the Morphology of the Hippocampus
Mohammed Akbar presented poster titled Protective Effect of Docosahexaenoic Acid in Neuronal Apoptosis: Involvement of Phosphatidyl Inositol 3-Kinase Pathway
Laboratory of Membrane Biochemistry And Biophysics Staff Participation At the 41 Th Experimental NMR Conference, Pacific Grove Ca, 9-14 April 2000
Klaus Gawrisch presented the poster Lateral Lipid Diffusion Dominates Noesy Cross-Relaxation In Membranes
Edward Sternin presented the poster Temperature Dependence of DMPC/DHPC Mixing in Bicelles and Its Structural Implications
69th Annual Meeting of the American Association of Physical Anthropologists, San Antonio TX, 10-15 April 2000
Melissa Gerald (LCS/NN) presented the lecture Cheaters Never Prosper--Social Mechanisms Maintain Honest Signals of Status in Vervet Monkey Scrotal Color
Connie Kolman and Jeffrey Long (LNG) presented the paper the Mongolian Diaspora?
Joseph Lorenz (LNG) presented the poster Sequence Diversity Among Haplogroup A mtDNA Control Region Lineages in an Alaskan Na-Dene Population
Laboratory of Clinical Studies Staff Participation at the 31st Annual ASAM Medical-Scientific Conference, Chicago IL, 13-16 April 2000
James D. Higley presented lecture Genotypic and Environmental Influences on the Neurobiology of Excessive Alcohol Consumption: A Nonhuman Primate Model
Daniel W. Hommer presented lecture in the Symposium Neuroimaging for Addictive Disorders--Examining the Brain in Humans
55th Annual Meeting of the Society of Biological Psychiatry, Chicago IL, 11-13 May 2000
James D. Higley (LCS/NN) Chaired a symposium and present the paper Genotypic and Environmental Influences on Serotonin Differences--A Nonhuman Primate Model
David Goldman (LNG) gave the lecture Variation in Dopamine and Serotonin Function
Laboratory of Membrane Biochemistry And Biophysics Staff Participation At the 4th Congress of the International Society For the Study of Fatty Acids And Lipids (ISSFAl), Tsukuba, Japan, 4-9 June 2000
Joseph Hibbeln presented lecture Omega-3 PUFAs and Psychiatric Disorders: Vulnerability for Adults and Infants
Burton J Litman presented lecture How Do DHA Phospholipids Modulate the Activity of the Visual Transduction Pathway
Mohammed Akbar presented lecture the Role of Docosahexaenoic Acid in Neuronal Signaling
Robert Pawlosky gave the talk Kinetic Modeling of Essential Fatty Acid Metabolism in Humans vs Bolus-Dose Administration of Deuterium-Labeled Linoleic and Linolenic Acid
Norman Salem presented the lecture Rats with Lower Brain DHA Show Performance Losses in Olfactory and Spatial Learning and Memory-Related Tasks
Other Presentations
Burton J. Litman (LMBB) present seminar How Do Membrane Hydration and ETOH Modulate Signaling in the Rhodopsin Activated Visual Transduction System? University of North Carolina, Department of Biochemistry, Chapel Hill NC, 2/1/2000
Melissa S. Gerald (LCS/NN) presented seminar How Color May Guide the Vervet Monkey World. Lehigh University, Department of Biological Sciences, Bethlehem PA, 2/10-11/00
Daniel E. Rio (LCS) presented a research paper at the International Society for Optical Engineering, Medical Imaging 2000 Conference, San Diego CA, 02/12-18/00
David Goldman (LNG) gave a lecture entitled In Vivo Neurochemical Correlates of Neurotrans Gene Polymorphs that are In Vitro Functional. 7th Annual Meeting on Molecular Psychiatry, Park City UT, 2/13-15/00
Klaus Gawrisch (LMBB) gave lectures entitled Role of the Aromatic Amino Acid-Tryptophan in Lipid-Protein Interaction, Muenster, Germany; and Lipid-Protein Interaction in Neural Receptor Membranes, Halle, Germany, 3/22-29/00
Joannie Shen (LCS) presented a paper at the International Congress on Clinical Research and Quality Management in Complementary Medicine, Munich, Germany, 04/6-8/00
Norman Salem (LMBB) presented the talk Essentiality of Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids in Brain Development at the Experimental Biology 2000 Food & Nutrition Forum, San Diego CA, 04/15/00
Joseph Lorenz (LNG) gave the talk Out of California? the Pattern of Mitochrondial DNA Sequence Variation in North America at the Society for California Archaeology (SCA) Year 2000 Annual Meeting, Riverside CA, 04/19-22/00
Jeffrey Long (LNG) give the talk Genetic Studies on Alcoholism in American Indian Communities at the Indian Health Service Meeting, Albuquerque, NM, 04/24-25/00
Joseph Hibbeln (LMBB) Chaired the session Lipids and Psychiatric Disorders and presented a talk on Improvements in heart rate variability among adolescent rhesus monkeys fed formula supplemented with dha and aa as infants-Neuropsychiatric Implications at the 91st Annual Meeting & Expo of the American Oil Chemists' Society (AOCS), San Diego CA, 04/25-28/00
Joseph Hibbeln (LMBB) gave the talk Fish Consumption, Depression and Suicidality in a General Population at the 153rd Annual Meeting of the American Psychiatric Association, Chicago IL, 05/13-18/00
Norman Salem presented the lecture Essential Fatty Acid Comp & Metabolism in Relation to Nervous System Development and Function at the University of Tokyo, 06/09/00
Articles/Reviews
Cardozo-Pelaez F, Brooks PJ, Stedeford T, Song SJ, Sanchez-Ramos J: DNA damage, repair, and antioxidant systems in brain regions: A correlative study. Free Radical Biology and Medicine 2000;28(5):779-85
Castellanos FX, Marvasti FF, Ducharme JL, Walter JM, Israel ME, Krain A, Pavlovsky C, Hommer DW: Executive function oculomotor tasks in girls with ADHD. Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry 2000;39(5):644-50
DePetrillo PB, Bennett AJ, Speers D, Suomi SJ, Shoaf SE, Karimullah K, Higley JD: Ondansetron modulates pharmacodynamic effects of ketamine on electrocardiographic signals in rhesus monkeys. European Journal of Pharmacology 2000;391(1-2):113-9
Fenton WS, Hibbeln J, Knable M: Essential fatty acids, lipid membrane abnormalities, and the diagnosis and treatment of schizophrenia. Biological Psychiatry 2000;47(1):8-21 (REV)
Heinz A, Goldman D, Jones DW, Palmour R, Hommer D, Gorey JG, Lee KS, Linnoila M, Winberger DR: Genotype influences in vivo dopamine transporter availability in human striatum. Neuropsychopharmacology 2000;22(2):133-9
Heinz A, Jones DW, Mazzanti C, Goldman D, Ragan P, Hommer D, Linnoila M, Weinberger DR: A relationship between serotonin transporter genotype and in vivo protein expression and alcohol neurotoxicity. Biological Psychiatry 2000;47(7):643-9
Heinz A, Weingartner H, George D, Hommer D, Wolkowitz OM, Linnoila M: Severity of depression in abstinent alcoholics is associated with monoamine metabolites and dehydroepiandrosterone-sulfate concentrations. Psychiatry Research 1999;89(2):97-106
Hommer DW: Functional imaging of craving. Alcohol Research & Health 1999;23(3):187-196
Johnstone LE, Brown CH, Meeren HKM, Vuijst CL, Brooks PJ, Leng G, Russell JA: Local morphine withdrawal increases c-fos gene, fos protein, and oxytocin gene expression in hypothalamic magnocellular neurosecretory cells. JOURNAL OF Neuroscience 2000;20(3):1272-80
Kim HY, Hamilton J: Accumulation of docosahexaenoic acid in phosphatidylserine is selectively inhibited by chronic ethanol exposure in C-6 glioma cells. Lipids 2000;35(2):187-95
Kim SS, Yoo YM, Shin JS, Jeong KS: Blood compatibility of polyurethane-poly(vinyl alcohol) polymer blends. Polymer-Korea 2000;24(1):82-89
Kim YS, Zhang HJ, Kim HY: Profiling neurosteroids in cerebrospinal fluids and plasma by gas chromatography/electron capture negative chemical ionization mass spectrometry. Analytical Biochemistry 2000;277(2):187-95
Koenig BW, Mitchell DC, Konig S, Grzesiek S, Litman BJ, Bax A: Measurement of dipolar couplings in a transducin peptide fragment weakly bound to oriented photo-activated rhodopsin. Journal of Biomolecular NMR 2000;16(2):121-5
Kolman CJ, Tuross N: Ancient DNA analysis of human populations. American Journal of Physical Anthropology 2000;111(1):5-23
Liesi P, Stewart RR, Wright JM: Involvement of GIRK2 in postnatal development of the weaver cerebellum. Journal of Neuroscience Research 2000;60(2):164-73
Mehlman PT, Westergaard GC, Hoos BJ, Sallee FR, Marsh S, Suomi SJ, Linnoila M, Higley JD: CSF5-HIAA and nighttime activity in free-ranging primates. Neuropsychopharmacology 2000;22(2):210-8
Mitchell DC, Litman BJ: Effect of ethanol and osmotic stress on receptor conformation - reduced water activity amplifies the effect of ethanol on metarhodopsin II formation. Journal of Biological Chemistry 2000;275(8):5355-60
Nicolson R, Lenane M, Singaracharlu S, Malaspina D, Giedd JN, Hamburger SD, Gochman P, Bedwell J, Thaker GK, Fernandez T, Wudarsky M, Hommer DW, Rapoport JL: Premorbid speech and language impairments in childhood-onset schizophrenia: Association with risk factors. American Journal of Psychiatry 2000;157(5):794-800
Shoaf SE: Pharmacokinetics of intravenous alcohol: Two compartment, dual Michaelis-Menten elimination. Alcoholism-Clinical and Experimental Research 2000;24(4):424-5
Shoaf SE, Carson RE, Hommer D, Williams WA, Higley JD, Schmall B, Herscovitch P, Eckelman WC, Linnoila M: the suitability of [C-11]-alpha-methyl-L-tryptophan as a tracer for serotonin synthesis: Studies with dual administration of [C-11] and [C-14] labeled tracer. Journal of Cerebral Blood Flow and Metabolism 2000;20(2):244-52
Yau WM, Gawrisch K: Lateral lipid diffusion dominates NOESY cross-relaxation in membranes. Journal of the American Chemical Society 2000;122(16):3971-2
Zajicek KB, Price CS, Shoaf SE, Mehlman PT, Suomi SJ, Linnoila M, Higley JD: Seasonal variation in CSF5-HIAA concentrations in male rhesus macaques. Neuropsychopharmacology 2000;22(3):240-50
Zhang HJ, Akbar M, Kim HY: Melatonin: an endogenous negative modulator of 12-lipoxygenation in the rat pineal gland. Biochemical Journal 1999;344:487-93 (Part 2)
Abstracts
Ahmad A, Greiner RS, Moriguchi T, Salem N: Effects of dietary omega-3 fatty acid on the morphology of the hippocampus. Journal of Neurochemistry 2000;74:S88 (Suppl. S)
Akbar M, Kim HY: Protective effect of docosahexaenoic acid in neuronal apoptosis: Involvement of phosphatidyl inositol 3-kinase pathway. Journal of Neurochemistry 2000;74:S7 (Suppl. S)
Bennett AJ, Lesch KP, Heils A, Long J, Lorenz JP, Shoaf SE, Champoux M, Suomi SJ, Higley JD: Serotonin transporter gene variation and early rearing environment interact to affect CSF5-HIAA concentrations, aggressive behavior, and alcohol consumption in rhesus monkeys. Behavior Genetics 1999;29(5):349-50
Contreras MA, Greiner RS, Chang MCJ, Myers CS, Bell JM, Balbo A, Salem N, Rapoport SL: Chronic deprivation of alpha-linolenic acid decreases the turnover of docosahexaenoate in rats brain phospholipids. Journal of Neurochemistry 2000;74:S88 (Suppl. S)
Goldman D, Kittles RA, Bergen AW, Eggert M, Virkkunen M, Long J: Role of the Y chromosome in alcohol dependence and related personality traits: A cladistic analysis with eight-locus haplotypes in Finnish males. Behavior Genetics 1999;29(5):356-7
Higley JD, Bennett A: Impaired CNS serotonin functioning, excessive alcohol intake and aggression: A nonhuman primate model of genetic and environmental influences. Behavior Genetics 1999;29(5):357-8
Knutson B, Adams S, Kaiser E, Walker J, Hommer D. FMRI visualization of brain activity during anticipation of monetary reward. Journal of Cognitive Neuroscience 2000;56 (Suppl. S)
Kolman CJ, Sambuughin N, Goldfarb L. the Mongolian diaspora? American Journal of Physical Anthropology 2000;199 (Suppl. 30)
Lorenz JG, Wang YL, Romero FC, Kittles RA, Goldman D, Long JC: Sequence diversity among haplogroup A mtDNA control region lineages in an Alaskan Na-Dene population. American Journal of Physical Anthropology 2000;213 (Suppl. 30)
Malhotra AK, Goldman D: Reverse pharmacogenetics: molecular genetics in the prediction of rapid relapse following antipsychotic drug discontinuation. Schizophrenia Research 2000;41(1):97-8 (Sp. Iss)
Mitchell DC, Litman BJ: Reduced water activity amplifies the poteniation of metarhodopsin II formation by ethanol. Biophysical Journal 2000;78(1):410A (Part 2)
Niu SL, Mitchell DC, Litman BJ: Dependence of G-protein binding by metarhodopsin II on bilayer lipid composition. Biophysical Journal 2000;78(1):67A (Part 2)
Pawlosky R, Novotny JA, Hibbeln J, Wegher B, Salem N: A compartmental model for the metabolism of essential fatty acids in humans. FASEB JOURNAL 2000;14(4):A251
Polozov IV, Litman BJ, Gawrisch K: Deuterium-NMR studies of protein-lipid interactions - Rhodopsin's preference for polyunsaturated lipids. Biophysical Journal 2000;78(1):412A (Part 2)
Polozova A, Litman BJ: Acyl chain-based molecular sorting of lipids by a G-protein coupled receptor: Specific association of rhodopsin with polyunsaturated lipids. Biophysical Journal 2000;78(1):410A (Part 2)
Yau WM, Gawrisch K: Electric dipolar interactions between tryptophan and phospholipids. Biophysical Journal 2000;78(1):413A (Part 2)
NIAAA-Sponsored Workshops
The following Alcohol Research Utilization System (ARUS) symposia and activities have been scheduled for the next four months (June, July, August, and September).
The Institute is providing partial support for 40 students and 22 Junior Investigators to assist them in participating in the Annual Scientific Meeting of the Research Society on Alcoholism (RSA) June 24-29, 2000, in Denver, Colorado.
Contact: Dr. Tina Vanderveen , 301/443-2531; evanderv@mail.nih.gov
The Institute is co-sponsoring the satellite symposium, "CNS Mechanism in Alcohol Relapse," to be held on June 24, 2000, from 8:30 am - 5:00 pm at the Annual Scientific Meeting of RSA June 24-29,2000 in Denver, Colorado.
Contact: Dr. Antonio Noronha, 301/443-7722; anoronha@mail.nih.gov
"NIAAA Researcher Work Group on Alcohol-Related Problems Among College Students" to be held in mid-July, 2000, in the Washington DC area (site to be determined).
Contact: Dr. Gayle Boyd, 301/443-8766; gboyd@mail.nih.gov
Vivian B. Faden, Ph.D. who has worked at NIAAA since 1983 was appointed Acting Chief of the Epidemiology Branch, Division of Biometry and Epidemiology, on March 1, 2000. Dr. Faden received her undergraduate degree from Brown University in 1972, her doctorate in Quantitative Psychology from the University of Maryland in 1978 and completed a Clinical Retraining Program in Psychology at the George Washington University in 1988. Dr. Faden is a licensed psychologist in Maryland and a Certified Maryland School Psychologist II. While at NIAAA, Dr. Faden has focused her efforts in the areas of fetal alcohol exposure and drinking by youth. In the area of fetal alcohol exposure, she has been involved in Institute activities including the DC Initiative on FAS and the Interagency Coordinating Committee on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and has published secondary analyses of existing national sets. For about the past two years, Dr. Faden has served as NIAAA liaison to the Panel on Contexts and Consequences, one of the two panels of the Subcommittee on College Drinking of the National Advisory Council.
Patrick Sweet joins the Office of Policy, Legislation, and Public Liaison for the summer of 2000 as a policy intern. Mr. Sweet will be a senior at the University of Virginia this fall, and will graduate with a degree in biology in May 2001. His long term objective is to do clinical research in addiction medicine.
Patrick already has significant experience in the alcohol field. He has participated in and/or led several university-based activities around alcohol issues (U. Virginia alcohol awareness week; U. Virginia Alcohol and Drug Abuse Prevention Team, etc.), and he also volunteers his time as a mentor to recovering addicts and alcoholics in treatment centers. Patrick is also a student representative to the NIAAA National Advisory Council's Subcommittee on College Drinking. This internship will give him an opportunity to learn about and assist OPLPL acting director Geoff Laredo with a variety of policy issues and projects currently under development in the Office. Patrick's primary focus will be on college drinking issues, where he will provide significant assistance to Steve Long and Fred Donodeo in the various activities of the Subcommittee.
Mary Wendehack joined the Institute last November to work with Dr. Susanne Medgyesi-Mitschang on the Governors' spouses initiative. She had been retired after more than 20 years with NIH, first in the National Institute on Aging working in the extramural programs office and then in the National Institute of Nursing Research in the science policy and information office.
DICBR Term Appointments
Nadukkudy V. Eldho, PhD, was appointed as a Visiting Fellow (04/17/00 - 04/16/02) in the Section of Nuclear Magnetic Resonance, Laboratory of Membrane Biochemistry and Biophysics. Dr. Eldho received his PhD (1999) in Chemistry from the University of Kerala, Trivandrum, India and received his MS (1995) in Chemistry from Mahatma Gandhi University, Kottayam, India. Dr. Eldho's graduate work focused on synthesis and physical characterization of photochemically active substances. During his fellowship with LMBB, he will be trained in the application of NMR spectroscopy to study protein-lipid interaction. Experiments on reconstituted lipid-protein systems have demonstrated that proteins sense the differences in biophysical properties of the surrounding lipid matrix, in particular, changes related to lipid polyunsaturation. Investigation of lipid-protein interaction has proven to be extremely difficult because the changes in membrane structure related to differences in protein function are very small. Dr. Eldho will evaluate the hypothesis that differences in biophysical parameters of the lipid matrix, related to shifts in lipid hydrocarbon chain unsaturation, are responsible for altered neural receptor function. He will investigate protein-lipid interaction using the membrane receptor rhodopsin because it has been widely recognized that the rhodopsin molecule is a valid model for G-protein coupled membrane receptors. Experiments will be conducted on reconstituted model membranes containing lipids rich in docosapentaenoic acid to evaluate the feasibility of synthesis of partially deuterated docosapentaenoic acid. To carry out his studies, Dr. Eldho will be trained in the use of a variety of solid-state NMR methods developed by the laboratory.
Susumu Koyama, MD, PhD, was appointed as a Visiting Fellow (04/10/00 - 04/09/02) in the Section on Physiology, Laboratory of Molecular and Cellular Neurobiology. Dr. Koyama received his MD (1993) and his PhD in Psychosomatic Medicine (2000) from Kyushu University, Japan. Dr. Koyama's training will focus on techniques used to study the cellular and molecular physiology and pharmacology of the mammalian nervous system, the mechanisms involved in synaptic plasticity and the interaction of alcohol and other neuroactive substances with these mechanisms. In this regard, he will be trained in the use of freshly isolated neurons, primary tissue culture of neurons and/or brain slices in conjunction with whole-cell or single-channel patch-clamp recording from neurons to study cellular physiology and pharmacology. To study the molecular physiology and pharmacology of neuronal membrane receptors and ion channels, Dr. Koyama will receive training in the preparation and expression cDNA and cRNA from cloned receptors and ion channels or mRNA from brain. He will also receiving training in electrophysiological techniques used to study the function of recombinant receptors and ion channels expressed in cell lines or oocytes.
Sun Young Lim, PhD, was appointed as a Visiting Fellow (04/17/00 - 04/16/02) in the office of the Chief, Laboratory of Membrane Biochemistry and Biophysics. Dr. Lim received her PhD from Pusan National University, Pusan, Korea in 1997. Prior to joining the LMBB, Dr. Lim was awarded a fellowship at the National Food Research Institute, Science & Technology Agency, Japan, where she studied the effect of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and phosphatidylcholine on maze-learning ability and fatty acid composition of plasma and brain lipids in mice. Dr. Lim will expand on this training while with LMBB where she will study changes in rat brain function as measured by behavioral means when the CNS DHA level is altered.
Peggy Murray, Office of Collaborative Research Activities, received the 2000 Distinguished Alumni Award from St. Mary's College of Maryland.
On March 29, Dr. Susan Martin, Division of Clinical and Prevention Research, was presented with a "Breaking the Glass Ceiling Award" by the National Center for Women in Policing at their annual conference in Baltimore, Maryland.
On May 16, 2000, Dr. Harold Perl, Division of Clinical and Prevention Research, was presented with a special recognition award from the NIH Office of Equal Opportunity in recognition of his service as an Equal Employment Opportunity counselor.
Last reviewed: July 2, 2008
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