# The role of rapid estrogen signaling in alcohol drinking behavior

> **NIH NIH R01** · WEILL MEDICAL COLL OF CORNELL UNIV · 2024 · $570,176

## Abstract

Project Summary/Abstract
Binge alcohol drinking is a major risk factor for many diseases, including alcohol use disorder (AUD) and other
neuropsychiatric diseases, and women are at greater risk for developing AUD than men with the same history
of alcohol use. The sex hormone estrogen, which fluctuates across the menstrual/estrous cycle in females, has
been implicated in playing a regulatory role in alcohol drinking behavior across mammalian species, but the
specific mechanisms underlying this function are not well understood. We recently found that ovarian estrogen
acts via rapid, nongenomic signaling at membrane-associated estrogen receptors in the limbic system to drive
binge alcohol drinking behavior in gonadally intact female mice. We hypothesize that estrogen regulates
presynaptic neurotransmitter release and postsynaptic excitability in a coordinated fashion to regulate the
activation and signaling of critical neuropeptidergic circuits that promote alcohol use. In the proposed work, we
examine the circuit and receptor signaling context for rapid E2 modulation of neuronal function that drives
binge alcohol drinking in intact female mice. These studies will improve our understanding of this behavior in
females, potentially providing new avenues for pharmacotherapeutic approaches to curbing excessive alcohol
consumption.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10981991
- **Project number:** 2R01AA027645-06
- **Recipient organization:** WEILL MEDICAL COLL OF CORNELL UNIV
- **Principal Investigator:** Kristen Elizabeth Pleil
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $570,176
- **Award type:** 2
- **Project period:** 2019-09-10 → 2029-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10981991

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10981991, The role of rapid estrogen signaling in alcohol drinking behavior (2R01AA027645-06). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-27 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10981991. Licensed CC0.

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