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Principal Investigator: Louise Mewton
Organization: UNIVERSITY OF SYDNEY
Fiscal Year: 2024
Award: $239,452
Funding agency: National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism
PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT
Globally, 1.34 billion people consume alcohol in harmful amounts, with alcohol use accounting for 1.78 million
deaths in 2020. Alcohol use often begins, and noticeably escalates, throughout adolescence. Incidence of
alcohol use disorder (AUD) and related symptomatology follows a similar pattern, peaking between the ages of
18 and 20 years. As such, AUD has been described as a “developmental disorder” of young adulthood. While
rates of problematic drinking are highest among young adults, recent years have seen large increases in
problematic drinking among older adults, with corresponding increases in AUD and alcohol-related
hospitalizations. The developmental processes contributing to alcohol use disorders (AUD) have long been
recognised but there remain substantial gaps in our knowledge about the neurobiological predictors of
“milestones” along the pathway to AUD, as well as the neurobiological consequences of alcohol use throughout
adolescence into midlife and older age. Our overarching aim is to therefore uncover the neurobiological
risks of adolescent alcohol use and distinguish these from the consequences of alcohol use in
adolescence and across the lifespan. This will be done within a developmental framework and conducted with
a focus on replicability and rigorous causal modelling. To address our aim, we need large-scale longitudinal
assessments of alcohol use, capturing the peak period of adolescent risk, and incorporating comprehensive
other substance use, behavioral, environmental, and imaging data. Data from the Adolescent Brain and
Cognitive Development (ABCD) Study therefore provide an unprecedented opportunity to address our aim. To
extend our examination of the consequences of alcohol use across the lifespan, we will combine (or harmonize)
ABCD data with large-scale, high quality cohort data from different life stages and jointly analyze these data to
establish the neurobiological predictors and consequences of alcohol use at key periods across the lifespan
within a unified framework. This project represents innovation in its: 1) developmental approach to the
relationship between alcohol use and neurobiology which focuses on adolescence but also extends across the
lifespan into older adulthood; 2) harmonization of data across four landmark datasets across the lifespan; 3)
methodological rigor focusing on the promotion of causal inference; 4) the application of neuroimaging and
biostatistical techniques that are unique to the research team; and (5) focus on replicability and the open science
framework, including preregistration of all analyses and publicly available code. Outcomes from this project will
have the potential to provide novel neurobiological targets for medication development, as well as alcohol
preventions and interventions informed by neuroscience. We will also take the first steps towards the
establishment of a larger international consortium of longitudinal cohort studies focused on the impact of alcohol
use on brain health across the lifespan.
Terms: <12-20 years old><21+ years old><65 and older><65 or older><65 years of age and older><65 years of age or more><65 years of age or older><65+ years><65+ years old><> 65 years><Accounting><Address><Adolescence><Adolescent><Adolescent Development><Adolescent Youth><Adult><Adult Human><Age><Aged 65 and Over><Aging><Alcohol Chemical Class><Alcohol Drinking><Alcohol consumption><Alcohols><Behavioral><Biometrics><Biometry><Biostatistics><Brain><Brain Nervous System><Cessation of life><Chronic><Code><Coding System><Data><Data Set><Death><Development><Developmental Process><Disabling><Drugs><Encephalon><EtOH drinking><EtOH use><Follow-Up Studies><Followup Studies><Generalized Growth><Growth><Hospital Admission><Hospitalization><Image><Incidence><International><Investigators><Knowledge><Life><Long-term cohort study><Longitudinal cohort study><Longterm cohort study><Machine Learning><Maps><Medication><Memory><Methodology><Methods><Modeling><Neural Development><Neurobiology><Neurosciences><Outcome><Pathway interactions><Pattern><Persons><Pharmaceutical Preparations><Position><Positioning Attribute><Probability><Psychopathology><Recurrence><Recurrent><Research><Research Personnel><Researchers><Risk><Sample Size><Sampling><Techniques><Testing><Time><Tissue Growth><Twin Multiple Birth><Twins><Youth Drinking><abnormal psychology><above age 65><adolescence (12-20)><adolescent alcohol co-use><adolescent alcohol consumption><adolescent alcohol drinking><adolescent alcohol intake><adolescent alcohol risk><adolescent alcohol use><adolescent drinking><adult youth><adulthood><after age 65><age 65 and greater><age 65 and older><age 65 or older><age > 65><age of 65 years onward><aged 65 and greater><aged 65+><aged ≥65><ages><alcohol consequences><alcohol during adolescence><alcohol effect><alcohol ingestion><alcohol initiation><alcohol intake><alcohol intake among adolescents><alcohol intervention><alcohol prevention><alcohol product use><alcohol use><alcohol use among adolescents><alcohol use disorder><alcohol use during adolescence><alcohol use in adolescence><alcohol use in adolescents><alcohol use initiation><alcoholic beverage consumption><alcoholic drink intake><biobank><biorepository><brain health><causal diagram><causal model><cognitive development><cognitive training><cohort><data harmonization><design><designing><developmental><developmental disease><developmental disorder><drinking><drinking during adolescence><drinking in adolescent><drinking initiation><drinking onset><drug/agent><ethanol consumption><ethanol drinking><ethanol during adolescence><ethanol effect><ethanol ingestion><ethanol intake><ethanol product use><ethanol use><ethanol use disorder><harmonized data><human old age (65+)><imaging><innovate><innovation><innovative><juvenile><juvenile human><life span><lifespan><machine based learning><mid life><mid-life><middle age><middle aged><midlife><model design><neural control><neural imaging><neural regulation><neuro-imaging><neurobiological><neurodevelopment><neuroimaging><neurological imaging><neuromodulation><neuromodulatory><neuroregulation><novel><old age><older adult><older adulthood><ontogeny><open data><open science><open-source data><over 65 years><pathway><prevent alcohol><preventing alcohol><substance use><substance using><symptomatology><teen drinking><teenage alcohol use><teenage drinking><teenager alcohol use><under age alcohol consumption><under age alcohol use><underage alcohol consumption><underage alcohol use><underage drinking><young adult><young adulthood><youth alcohol co-use><youth alcohol consumption><youth alcohol use><≥65 years>