Personalizing alcohol use disorder treatment with kappa-opioid drugs
Official title: Preclinical approaches for advancing precision applications of kappa-opioid receptor ligands in AUD treatment
Funded at Vanderbilt University · NIH-11395418 · Data updated 2026-11-12
Looking into whether medicines that act on the kappa-opioid receptor could help people with alcohol use disorder and which patients they might help best.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Vanderbilt University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Nashville, UNITED STATES) |
| Project start | March 15, 2024 |
| Project end | January 31, 2029 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $295,109 |
| NIH project number | 5P60AA031124-03 |
| Project ID | NIH-11395418 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Adults with alcohol use disorder—especially those with heavy, recurrent, or treatment-resistant drinking—would be the most likely candidates for related future trials.
✕Less likely to help
People with mild, non-problematic drinking or whose alcohol problems arise from causes unrelated to KOR-related biology may be unlikely to benefit.
What this research studies
Researchers use mouse models where animals self-administer alcohol to see how kappa-opioid receptor (KOR) drugs change drinking behavior in males and females. They give KOR ligands systemically and directly into specific brain regions to link drug actions to particular behaviors. The team uses ex vivo multiphoton imaging and neurophysiology to map how KOR signaling alters neuronal activity tied to individual differences in drinking. Findings aim to point to specific KOR compounds and brain targets that could be matched to different patterns of alcohol use in future human treatments.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could guide more personalized KOR-based medications that better reduce harmful drinking in people with AUD.
How similar studies have gone: Preclinical studies and some early clinical-stage KOR compounds have shown promise in reducing alcohol-related behaviors, but applying KOR drugs in a precision, individualized way is still largely untested.
Where this research is happening
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Vanderbilt University
Nashville, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Siciliano, Cody — Vanderbilt University
- Study coordinator: Siciliano, Cody
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.