How genes, culture, and environment shape drinking in diverse youth
Gene-Environment Interplay and Alcohol Use among Racially-Ethnically Diverse Youth: A Developmentally and Culturally Informed Approach
This project looks at how genetic risks plus cultural and environmental factors together influence when and how racially and ethnically diverse children and teens start using alcohol.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Arizona State University-Tempe Campus NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Scottsdale, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11094924 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
If you are a parent or young person, this work uses health, behavior, and genetic information already collected from a large national group of children to learn what drives early alcohol use. The team combines genomic data with measures of family, neighborhood, and cultural context from the ABCD Study to see how risk unfolds across development. They focus on racially and ethnically diverse youth so results better reflect different communities. Findings are intended to point toward earlier, culturally informed prevention strategies.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: The focus is on children and adolescents—especially racially and ethnically diverse youth enrolled in or similar to participants in the ABCD Study (preteen through teen ages).
Not a fit: Adults with long-standing alcohol use disorder or people not represented in the ABCD age or demographic range may not directly benefit from this specific work.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: Results could help identify high-risk youth earlier and guide culturally tailored prevention efforts to reduce early-onset drinking and later alcohol problems.
How similar studies have performed: Prior genetic and gene-by-environment studies have linked genes to alcohol outcomes but were mostly done in European-ancestry or older samples and rarely incorporated cultural context, so this project builds on limited prior evidence.
Where this research is happening
Scottsdale, United States
- Arizona State University-Tempe Campus — Scottsdale, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Su, Jinni — Arizona State University-Tempe Campus
- Study coordinator: Su, Jinni
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 below.