Understanding how early life stress affects adolescent drug risk using brain data
Official title: A Neuroecological Approach to Examining the Effects of Early Life Adversity on Adolescent Drug Use Vulnerabilities Using the ABCD Dataset
Funded at University of Georgia · NIH-11402669 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project looks at how stressful experiences in early life shape brain systems and behaviors that influence teen risk for drug use.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Georgia NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Athens, United States) |
| Project start | September 15, 2023 |
| Project end | July 31, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $606,299 |
| NIH project number | 5R01DA058334-04 |
| Project ID | NIH-11402669 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Adolescents and youths aged roughly 12 to 20 who have experienced early life adversity and are part of longitudinal datasets.
✕Less likely to help
Youth without significant early life adversity or without access to similar observational data may see no direct benefit.
What this research studies
The study uses brain and behavioral data from adolescents to understand how early adversity interacts with neural networks involved in emotion, reward, and self-control to influence drug-use risk. Researchers will analyze how cognitive control and emotion-processing systems develop together over time, and how stress dimensions modify this development using existing data from youth. The goal is to map which neural and environmental factors put some youths at higher risk and how these factors change in different contexts like family and school. This work could guide more targeted prevention efforts by identifying key brain-behavior pathways linked to vulnerability.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, findings could inform personalized prevention strategies and early interventions to reduce adolescent drug-use risk.
How similar studies have gone: Prior research has linked brain network development and stress exposure to behavioral risk, with growing evidence in adolescent populations.
Where this research is happening
-
University of Georgia
Athens, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Oshri, Assaf — University of Georgia
- Study coordinator: Oshri, Assaf
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
-
Couples-based motivational interviewing to reduce drug use and HIV risk in vulnerable male couples
A couples-focused program helps at-risk male couples reduce drug use and HIV risk together.
-
How growing up poor in rural Georgia affects children's brains and risk for drug use
This project looks at how early poverty and stress in rural Georgia change children's brain systems and their later chances of using drugs.
-
Understanding why teens relapse after treatment and how to keep them safe
A teen-focused study will look at why adolescents who finish inpatient treatment sometimes return to high-risk drug use and how that affects overdose risk.
-
Peer-led intervention to spread overdose prevention and support quitting opioids in high-risk communities
A randomized trial will test a peer-education program to reduce overdoses and help people who use opioids start or stay in treatment, by using social networks and new withdrawal-focused strategies.
-
High-Dose Medications for Opioid Use Disorder and Retention in Care
This project tests whether adjusted, higher-dose MOUD regimens can help people stay in treatment and reduce overdose risks during the fentanyl crisis.
-
OVAL: How laws about drug use in pregnancy affect pregnant and new mothers who use drugs
A nationwide project is looking at how laws about drug use in pregnancy influence health for pregnant and postpartum women who use drugs.
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.