Understanding how alcohol affects muscle health in liver disease
Official title: Mechanisms of HIF1 alpha mediated dysregulated skeletal muscle proteostasis in alcoholic liver disease
Funded at Cleveland Clinic Lerner Com-Cwru · NIH-11032829 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This study looks at how drinking alcohol affects muscle health in people with alcoholic liver disease, aiming to understand why they often lose muscle and find ways to help improve their strength and well-being.
Quick facts
| Grant type | Career grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Cleveland Clinic Lerner Com-Cwru NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Cleveland, United States) |
| Project start | March 1, 2021 |
| Project end | February 28, 2026 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $179,129 |
| NIH project number | 5K08AA028794-05 |
| Project ID | NIH-11032829 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates for this research are individuals diagnosed with alcoholic liver disease who are experiencing muscle loss or sarcopenia.
✕Less likely to help
Patients without alcoholic liver disease or those who do not exhibit muscle loss may not benefit from this research.
What this research studies
This research investigates the impact of alcohol use on skeletal muscle health in patients with alcoholic liver disease (ALD). It focuses on the mechanisms that lead to muscle loss, known as sarcopenia, which is common in ALD and linked to worse health outcomes. The study examines how alcohol consumption disrupts protein homeostasis and causes mitochondrial dysfunction, contributing to muscle deterioration. By exploring these underlying processes, the research aims to identify potential therapeutic targets for improving muscle health in affected patients.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this research could lead to new treatments that help preserve muscle mass and improve health outcomes for patients with alcoholic liver disease.
How similar studies have gone: Previous research has shown promising results in understanding muscle loss mechanisms in liver disease, but this specific approach focusing on HIF1α and alcohol's effects is relatively novel.
Where this research is happening
-
Cleveland Clinic Lerner Com-Cwru
Cleveland, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Welch, Nicole — Cleveland Clinic Lerner Com-Cwru
- Study coordinator: Welch, Nicole
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.