# Cortical subcortical reorganization and risk behaviors of early alcohol use initiation

> **NIH NIH R01** · YALE UNIVERSITY · 2024 · $344,434

## Abstract

Project Summary/Abstract
Early initiation of alcohol use (EIAU) during adolescence is a key contributor to development of lifetime alcohol
(AUD) and/or substance use disorders (SUDs). A critical component for preventing and intervening EIAU is early
detection using behavioral or cognitive risk precursors; and understanding better their underlying neural
substrates before the onset of substance use may aid in developing more effective and targeted interventions.
Prior studies suggest sleep disturbance, internalizing behaviors, externalizing behaviors, and cognitive
performance are potential risk precursors of EIAU. However, mixed or inconsistent findings have been reported
which may reflect study design and methodological issues, and the neural substrates subserving co-
development of these frequently occurring problems remain to be identified. In this application, we propose to
use data from the longitudinal Adolescent Brain Cognitive Development (ABCD) study to investigate the neural
substrates that are predictive of EIAU and its risk precursors. A number of advanced analytical approaches will
be used to extract novel features at both structural and functional levels. For example, the Joint and Individual
Variance Explained (JIVE) method will be used to extract biologically meaningful cortical-subcortical covariation
patterns. Existing literature and our preliminary results led us to hypothesize that the cortical-subcortical
covariation pattern including brainstem, thalamus, prefrontal cortex and other regions underlies the co-
development of sleep, internalizing behaviors, externalizing behaviors, and poor cognitive function from late
childhood to mid-adolescence. Specifically, this project has three complementary aims. Aim 1 will assess the
relationships between the baseline cortical-subcortical covariation patterns and EIAU and its four risk precursors
in mid-adolescence. Aim 2 will characterize the developmental trajectory of cortical-subcortical covariation
pattern and assess its dynamic relationship with the four risk precursors longitudinally. Aim 3 will explore whether
functional connectivity predicts sleep disturbance, cognitive performance, behavioral problems, and/or age at
first alcohol use. Results from this application will significantly advance the field of addiction neuroscience.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10873801
- **Project number:** 5R01AA029611-04
- **Recipient organization:** YALE UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** Marc N Potenza
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $344,434
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2021-09-25 → 2026-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10873801

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10873801, Cortical subcortical reorganization and risk behaviors of early alcohol use initiation (5R01AA029611-04). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10873801. Licensed CC0.

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