# Unraveling Epigenetic Mechanisms Of Opioid Addiction Susceptibility Using Multigenerational Animal Models

> **NIH NIH DP1** · TEMPLE UNIV OF THE COMMONWEALTH · 2021 · $13,948

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY
Drug addiction is a massive public health concern that inflicts extensive burdens on our economy and society.
The harmful consequences of drug abuse extend far beyond the addicts and gravely impact their families. A
growing body of evidence suggests that the children of fathers who consumed drugs around the time of
conception show altered brain function and behavioral abnormalities. We have established a highly
translational paradigm of paternal opioid drug taking, using morphine self-administration in rats to study this
phenomenon. Our results demonstrate that the male progeny of fathers (sires) that took morphine chronically
are more susceptible to develop addiction-like traits and self-administer morphine. This multigenerational
animal model offers a rare window into a pool of subjects that are more vulnerable to develop addiction, a
population that has been historically difficult to identify. Here, we can reliably and systematically produce
animals that show increased drug taking behavior, which offers a unique opportunity to delve into the
mechanisms underlying addiction susceptibility. This multifaceted project will combine behavioral and
molecular biological approaches to identify functionally relevant mechanisms that confer a higher propensity to
develop addiction.
The parent award and related studies address two major questions: (1) which germline epigenetic
reprogramming events are critical for shaping development toward addiction vulnerability into adulthood? (2)
what are the functionally relevant neuro-epigenetic processes that increase addiction-like behavior in our
multigenerational model of drug taking? This supplement will support a NIDA summer intern who will be trained
to develop research skills including data collection, data management, statistical analysis and dissemination
(written and oral) or results.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10399326
- **Project number:** 3DP1DA046537-04S2
- **Recipient organization:** TEMPLE UNIV OF THE COMMONWEALTH
- **Principal Investigator:** Mathieu Wimmer
- **Activity code:** DP1 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $13,948
- **Award type:** 3
- **Project period:** 2018-07-15 → 2023-05-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10399326

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10399326, Unraveling Epigenetic Mechanisms Of Opioid Addiction Susceptibility Using Multigenerational Animal Models (3DP1DA046537-04S2). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10399326. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*