Stress-related brain signals that drive alcohol relapse
Neuropharmacology Component - Martin-Fardon
This work explores how stress-linked brain chemicals make people with alcohol use disorder more likely to start drinking again, to help guide new treatments.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Scripps Research Institute, the NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (La Jolla, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11362017 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
Researchers are studying brain systems such as hypocretin/orexin, corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF), and dynorphin that change with alcohol use and stress. Most work uses animal models to examine how these signals in areas like the hypothalamus, amygdala, and ventral tegmental area affect stress-driven drinking and relapse. The team tests how these brain chemicals interact and whether changing their signaling with drugs alters relapse-like behaviors. Results aim to identify targets that could become medications to prevent relapse in people with alcohol use disorder.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: The findings would be most relevant to adults with alcohol use disorder who experience stress-related urges to drink or frequent relapses.
Not a fit: People whose drinking is not driven by stress, or those needing immediate clinical treatment options, may not directly benefit right away from this preclinical work.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could reveal new drug targets to reduce stress-triggered relapse in alcohol use disorder.
How similar studies have performed: Prior animal and some early human research points to orexin, CRF, and dynorphin in alcohol-seeking, but turning these findings into proven relapse-prevention medicines remains largely unproven.
Where this research is happening
La Jolla, United States
- Scripps Research Institute, the — La Jolla, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Martin-Fardon, Remi — Scripps Research Institute, the
- Study coordinator: Martin-Fardon, Remi
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.