Establishing the Influences of Childhood Trauma and Adolescent Alcohol Binge Exposures on Reward Functioning Among Young Adult Drinkers

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

Project Title: Establishing the Influences of Childhood Trauma and Adolescent Alcohol Binge Exposures on Reward Functioning Among Young Adult Drinkers Project Summary/Abstract: Deficits in reward functioning, including both overvaluation of alcohol rewards and devaluation of non-alcohol rewards, are central to empirically supported models of alcohol use disorder (AUD) etiology and maintenance. Emerging adulthood represents a sensitive risk period for the development of AUD symptoms, particularly among individuals with early life exposures to stress (e.g., childhood trauma) and alcohol. Animal studies support a causal link between early trauma and alcohol exposures and deficits in reward functioning; however, translational human laboratory models are limited. The specific aims of the study are to 1a) investigate differences in subjective and physiological (i.e., corrugator and zygomaticus fEMG) responses to social (i.e., non-alcohol) reward as a function of childhood trauma (CT) and/or adolescent alcohol binge exposures, 1b) evaluate differences in subjective and physiological responses to alcohol reward as a function of CT and/or adolescent alcohol binge exposures, 2) understand alcohol reward response in the context of social reward response, and 3) identify clinical correlates of alcohol and social reward response, with regard to current measures of alcohol (e.g., binge frequency, alcohol drinking motives, alcohol-related consequences) and psychiatric risk (e.g., anhedonia, depressive symptoms). To address these aims, the current study will recruit a sample (N = 100) of young adult drinkers to examine the unique and combined influence of CT and adolescent binge histories on self-report, behavioral, and physiological indices of social (i.e., non-alcohol) and alcohol reward functioning among a population at high-risk for AUD. These study aims will facilitate the primary training goals to 1) develop an understanding of the assessment and interpretation of alcohol-related phenotypes in adolescents and young adults, 2) acquire training in and knowledge of human laboratory models of reward functioning in AUD, 3) obtain clinical training in the assessment and treatment of AUD and comorbid conditions, and 4) gain training in advanced statistical methods. Mentorship provided by experts in human laboratory models of trauma and alcohol use, adolescent substance use risk, and psychophysiology of reward response will advance the candidate’s goals to expand her experience in measurement of alcohol-related phenotypes, human laboratory models of reward processing, and translational models of AUD. Ultimately, the proposed training and research plans will support the candidate’s long-term goal of pursuing a career as a NIAAA-funded independent investigator focused on understanding the interplay between stress and alcohol phenotypes in high-risk young adult populations. The proposed study will be one of the first to evaluate the joint impact of CT and adolescent binge drinking on reward functioning in an effort to inform an integrative model of how these experiences contribute to alterations in hedonic responding and associated AUD risk in young adulthood. This project is directly in line with the NIAAA Strategic Objectives to “study how alcohol affects neural circuits involved in reward.”