# Craniofacial Morphogenesis in Prenatal Alcohol Exposure

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIV OF NORTH CAROLINA CHAPEL HILL · 2020 · $39,139

## Abstract

ABSTRACT
Prenatal alcohol exposure is a leading cause of neurodevelopmental disability and may be accompanied
by characteristic facial deficits caused, in part, by the apoptotic deletion of neural crest progenitor cells.
The parent R01 (AA011085) tests the hypothesis that ribosome dysbiogenesis and nucleolar stress drive
this apoptosis, based on our whole transcriptome analysis of these cells. Exon-level reanalysis of that
dataset uncovered 19 miRNAs having altered representation in response to alcohol. One of these, miR-
3064-3p, is induced by alcohol (Fold-change 1.55, p=0.0002). miR-3064 is conserved across vertebrates
and is implicated in our ribosome dysbiogenesis and calcium-mediated apoptosis. Dr. Olivia Rivera
joined my lab July 22, 2019 to obtain training in epigenetics, and how alcohol dysregulates epigenetic
signals to impede embryo development. Her Ph.D. identified a polymorphism in a zinc transporter that
affects lactation in human and mouse. Upon discussion, we determined that investigation into miR-
3064’s role in neural crest apoptosis addresses this training, represents a logical extension of the parent
award, and positions Dr. Rivera for an independent career in alcohol and epigenetics.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10025955
- **Project number:** 3R01AA011085-23S1
- **Recipient organization:** UNIV OF NORTH CAROLINA CHAPEL HILL
- **Principal Investigator:** SUSAN M. SMITH
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $39,139
- **Award type:** 3
- **Project period:** 2019-12-01 → 2023-02-28

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10025955

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10025955, Craniofacial Morphogenesis in Prenatal Alcohol Exposure (3R01AA011085-23S1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-06-11 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10025955. Licensed CC0.

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