Investigating the role of sphingolipids in liver disease caused by alcohol.
Official title: Sphingolipids in alcoholic liver disease
Funded at Virginia Commonwealth University · NIH-11105882 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This study is looking at how alcohol impacts liver health and aims to find new ways to help people with alcoholic liver disease by understanding the role of certain molecules and the gut bacteria involved.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Virginia Commonwealth University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Richmond, United States) |
| Project start | July 1, 2023 |
| Project end | April 30, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $523,062 |
| NIH project number | 5R01AA030180-03 |
| Project ID | NIH-11105882 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates for this research are individuals diagnosed with alcoholic liver disease or those experiencing liver dysfunction related to alcohol consumption.
✕Less likely to help
Patients with liver disease not related to alcohol or those without liver dysfunction may not benefit from this research.
What this research studies
This research focuses on understanding how alcohol affects liver health, particularly through the lens of sphingolipids, which are important molecules in cellular signaling. The study aims to uncover the mechanisms by which alcohol disrupts liver function and contributes to alcoholic liver disease (ALD). By exploring the interactions between alcohol, liver metabolism, and the gut microbiome, the researchers hope to identify new therapeutic targets. Patients may benefit from insights that could lead to the development of effective treatments for ALD.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this research could lead to new therapies for patients suffering from alcoholic liver disease.
How similar studies have gone: Previous research has shown promising results in understanding the role of sphingolipids in liver disease, indicating that this approach has potential for success.
Where this research is happening
-
Virginia Commonwealth University
Richmond, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Zhou, Huiping Rose — Virginia Commonwealth University
- Study coordinator: Zhou, Huiping Rose
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
-
Microbiome and Innate Immune Response in Alcohol-Related Liver Disease
Researchers are studying how gut bacteria and the body's first-line immune defenses contribute to liver damage from alcohol, with a focus on how a specific bacteria and its toxins affect disease severity.
-
Lipotoxicity and Alcohol-Related Liver Disease
This project studies how fatty acids cause liver cell damage in alcohol-related liver disease to help develop new treatments.
-
NNMT as a Target to Treat Alcoholic Liver Disease
A study to see if blocking an enzyme called NNMT can help people with alcoholic liver disease.
-
How gut fungi may drive alcohol-related liver damage
Researchers are looking at whether specific fungi in the gut make liver damage from heavy drinking worse in people with alcohol-related liver disease.
-
Heat shock protein 90 and alcohol-related liver disease: how macrophages fuel inflammation
This project looks at how a cellular stress protein, HSP90, affects liver inflammation in people with alcohol-related liver disease by focusing on macrophages.
-
Why alcohol-related liver disease can come back after a transplant
Looking at whether an enzyme called CerS6 helps fat build up in the liver and whether measuring CerS6 can help detect or predict return of alcohol-related liver disease before or after a liver transplant.
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.