Multimodal brain imaging to understand how prenatal alcohol exposure affects memory in kids and teens
Official title: Multimodal imaging of prenatal alcohol exposure: Mechanisms underlying spatial navigation memory deficits in children and adolescents
Funded at Lovelace Biomedical Research Institute · NIH-11418989 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project uses brain scans to study how drinking alcohol before birth can change memory and spatial navigation in children and adolescents.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Lovelace Biomedical Research Institute NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Albuquerque, United States) |
| Project start | September 1, 2025 |
| Project end | June 30, 2030 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $737,461 |
| NIH project number | 5R01AA031657-02 |
| Project ID | NIH-11418989 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Children and adolescents aged 8–14 with documented prenatal alcohol exposure.
✕Less likely to help
Unrelated individuals without prenatal alcohol exposure or those outside the 8–14 age range may see little to no direct benefit.
What this research studies
The study will recruit 8- to 14-year-olds who were exposed to alcohol before birth and follow them with MRI and MEG scans while they complete spatial navigation tasks. By examining hippocampal and entorhinal circuits and neural oscillations, researchers aim to uncover how prenatal alcohol exposure alters brain dynamics that support memory. The findings could point to targets for interventions to improve memory outcomes in affected individuals.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the work could lead to better understanding of memory difficulties after prenatal alcohol exposure and inform early interventions to support learning and navigation skills.
How similar studies have gone: Previous animal and human studies suggest hippocampal circuits and oscillations are involved, but this study advances human multimodal imaging in a specific age range with PAE.
Where this research is happening
-
Lovelace Biomedical Research Institute
Albuquerque, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Candelaria-Cook, Felicha — Lovelace Biomedical Research Institute
- Study coordinator: Candelaria-Cook, Felicha
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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.