How brain immune signals and the brain’s scaffolding influence heavy drinking
Official title: 4/11 Neuroimmune and extracellular matrix interactions in alcohol consumption
Funded at Virginia Commonwealth University · NIH-11295481 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This work looks at whether immune activity in brain support cells changes the brain’s extracellular matrix and promotes heavier drinking, with implications for people who drink excessively or have alcohol use disorder.
Quick facts
| Grant type | U01 cooperative agreement |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Virginia Commonwealth University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Richmond, United States) |
| Project start | November 2, 2022 |
| Project end | January 31, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $426,938 |
| NIH project number | 5U01AA020912-16 |
| Project ID | NIH-11295481 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
This project uses animal models and is not enrolling patients, but people with heavy drinking or alcohol use disorder are the intended eventual beneficiaries of the findings.
✕Less likely to help
There is no direct benefit for people seeking immediate treatment because the experiments are done in mice and do not provide clinical care or enrollment.
What this research studies
Researchers will use mice to measure changes in the brain’s extracellular matrix (the structural ‘scaffolding’ around cells) after a period of binge-like alcohol drinking. They will use advanced protein and sugar analyses to map ECM changes and compare those results with existing gene-expression datasets. The team will remove a key immune-related gene, STAT3, specifically from astrocytes (brain support cells) to see if that prevents ECM changes and reduces binge drinking behavior. Results will help link cell-specific immune signaling, ECM structure, and alcohol intake.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could point to new targets in brain immune signaling or ECM biology that might lead to treatments reducing heavy alcohol use.
How similar studies have gone: Prior preclinical studies have linked neuroimmune signaling and STAT3 to alcohol drinking, but tying astrocyte STAT3-driven changes in the extracellular matrix specifically to increased drinking is a newer, less-tested approach.
Where this research is happening
-
Virginia Commonwealth University
Richmond, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Lasek, Amy Wolven — Virginia Commonwealth University
- Study coordinator: Lasek, Amy Wolven
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.