# Multi 'Omics Integration and Neurobiological Signatures of Alcohol Use Disorder

> **NIH NIH R01** · RESEARCH TRIANGLE INSTITUTE · 2020 · $614,693

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT
The goal of the proposed research is to discover neurobiological factors underlying alcohol use disorder
(AUD). We will identify genes with AUD-related differences in DNA methylation (DNAm) and RNA expression
(RNAexp) in two human brain tissues for AUD (dorsolateral prefrontal cortex [DLPFC] and nucleus
accumbens [NAc]), map genetic variants underlying these differences, and conduct large-scale association
testing of the regulatory genetic variants with AUD. Our proposed study will entail genome-wide testing, along
with targeted testing of the growing number of genetic loci associated with alcohol consumption and AUD.
Alcohol is the fourth leading cause of preventable morbidity and mortality in the United States. AUD affects
more than 16 million U.S. adults and youths and is highly heritable (50%–60%). Genome-wide association
study (GWAS) analyses have identified single nucleotide polymorphisms in or near alcohol dehydrogenase
and aldehyde dehydrogenase genes and 80+ other genetic loci for alcohol consumption and/or AUD risk.
However, their neurobiological effects are largely unknown. Because complex disease-associated variants
are widely observed to be enriched for association with DNAm and RNAexp of nearby genes (cis-methylation
and expression quantitative trait loci [cis-meQTLs and cis-eQTLs], respectively), we hypothesize that
differential gene regulation by AUD will add knowledge of the neurobiology underlying AUD risk and
consequences of alcohol exposure and that mapping the underlying cis-meQTLs and cis-eQTLs in DLPFC
and NAc, will distinguish these distinct, yet informative, neurobiological signatures. We propose the following
specific aims:
 Aim 1: Identify DNAm and RNAexp differences in NAc and DLPFC of AUD cases vs. controls.
 Aim 2: Map QTLs that underlie AUD-related DNAm and RNAexp differences in NAc and DLPFC.
 Aim 3: Test association of eQTLs and meQTLs with AUD risk.
 Aim 4: Functionally characterize alcohol consumption and AUD GWAS loci.
Aims 1, 2, and 4 will leverage multiple `omics data from postmortem human brain tissues from AUD case and
control decedents (total N = 220, the largest-to-date postmortem brain collection with AUD status known).
Aim 3 will use existing GWAS samples with AUD defined by DSM-5 (the most up-to-date version of the
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders): total N = 76,296. Aim 4 will cycle back to the
approaches taken in preceding aims, but it will focus on the 80+ prior GWAS-identified loci. Our integration of
epigenomics, transcriptomics, and genomics in human brain and extension into GWAS meta-analysis of AUD
will greatly improve the likelihood of meaningful discovery by targeting gene regions and specific variants with
high biological relevance, specifically in the brain, while retaining a genome-wide scope.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10023922
- **Project number:** 5R01AA027049-02
- **Recipient organization:** RESEARCH TRIANGLE INSTITUTE
- **Principal Investigator:** Laura J. Bierut
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $614,693
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2019-09-24 → 2024-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10023922

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10023922, Multi 'Omics Integration and Neurobiological Signatures of Alcohol Use Disorder (5R01AA027049-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10023922. Licensed CC0.

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