# Investigating the longitudinal relationship between alcohol use, neurophysiological functioning, and Alzheimer disease biomarkers in the Collaborative Study on the Genetics of Alcoholism

> **NIH NIH R01** · WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY · 2020 · $393,750

## Abstract

Project Summary
This is a study to investigate the relationship between trajectories of alcohol use, longitudinal changes in brain
function, and the development of Alzheimer disease (AD). To address gaps in knowledge about the
relationship between alcohol use and AD, we will integrate plasma Aβ testing and a measurement of clinical
dementia into ongoing assessments of N=600 participants (age ≥ 50, 17% African American) in a large
ongoing study of alcohol use disorder. We will leverage sample collection from the St. Louis site of the
Collaborative Study on the Genetics of Alcoholism (COGA), a longitudinal, family-based study of alcohol use
disorder funded by NIAAA for over 30 years, with extensive clinical, neuropsychological, electrophysiological,
and genetic data from families densely affected by alcohol use disorder and community-based comparison
families. The ongoing assessments of older COGA participants includes a comprehensive evaluation of alcohol
use, neurophysiological measures including resting-state electroencephalogram (EEG) and event-related brain
potentials (ERPs) acquired during cognitive tasks (same as in previous longitudinal assessments), and
neuropsychological surveys. Together with existing COGA data, the new combined assessment will allow for
creation of powerful measures of alcohol use, brain function, and neuropathology.
This represents the first study to integrate AD biomarkers with comprehensive, longitudinal assessments of
alcohol use. Aim 1 will examine the effect of alcohol consumption on preclinical AD and longitudinal changes in
brain function and cognition in older adults. Aim 2 will investigate genetic, comorbid, environmental, and
demographic factors as moderating the effect of alcohol consumption on AD biomarkers and brain function.
The innovations include integration of state-of-the-art AD assessment, plasma biomarker of AD, brain function
measures of neural synchronicity and connectivity, and comprehensive longitudinal assessment of alcohol use
in a high-risk sample that has been followed over 20 years. This proposal is significant because the products
and results will apply broadly to our understanding of both the development of AD and the long-term impact of
alcohol on the brain.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10131989
- **Project number:** 1R01AA029308-01
- **Recipient organization:** WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Sarah Hartz
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $393,750
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2020-09-20 → 2025-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10131989

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10131989, Investigating the longitudinal relationship between alcohol use, neurophysiological functioning, and Alzheimer disease biomarkers in the Collaborative Study on the Genetics of Alcoholism (1R01AA029308-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10131989. Licensed CC0.

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