Nebraska Center on Alcohol and Liver Health
Alcohol Center Of Research -- Nebraska (ACORN)
This center looks at how alcohol together with factors like age, diet, smoking, and infections affects liver health in people who drink.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Nebraska Medical Center NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Omaha, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11261134 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
Researchers at the center combine laboratory experiments, animal models, and analysis of human samples to map the "alcohol exposome" — the full set of alcohol-related exposures and interactions. Teams will study how age, nutritional status, smoking, and exposure to pathogens change the way alcohol harms the liver and other organs. The center brings together clinicians and basic scientists and will use patient samples, clinical data, and experimental models to connect lab findings to human disease. Work includes looking for biological markers and pathways that might explain why some people develop alcoholic fatty liver or more serious alcoholic liver disease.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal candidates would be adults who drink alcohol, especially people with alcoholic fatty liver or other alcohol-related liver problems, who can provide health information and biological samples or attend clinic visits.
Not a fit: People without alcohol exposure or those whose liver disease is due to non-alcoholic causes may not directly benefit from this center's findings.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could point to new ways to prevent, detect, or treat alcoholic liver disease by identifying key risk factors and biological targets.
How similar studies have performed: Past research has uncovered many mechanisms of alcohol-related liver injury, and this center builds on that history by taking a broader exposome-based approach that is newer and less tested.
Where this research is happening
Omaha, United States
- University of Nebraska Medical Center — Omaha, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Casey, Carol a. — University of Nebraska Medical Center
- Study coordinator: Casey, Carol a.
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.