Effects of Adolescent Binge Drinking on Brain Development

by: Michael Saunders

The National Institutes of Health, also referred to as NIH, is an agency that is operating under the United States Department of Health and Human Services.

The NIH is primarily responsible for ensuring all of the country's biomedical and health-related research studies. The attempts of the NIH are always geared towards the attainment of their mission, which is to "seek fundamental knowledge about the nature and behavior of living systems and the application of that knowledge to enhance health, lengthen life, and reduce the burdens of illness and disability."

In line with this mission, the National Institutes of Health, in close cooperation with the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) has established the Effects of Adolescent Binge Drinking on Brain Development Project.

The Effects of Adolescent Binge Drinking on Brain Development Project intends to determine the effects of adolescent binge drinking on the synaptic maturation and myelin formation in the a person's developing brain.

The NIH and NIAAA plans to achieve this by soliciting exploratory or developmental research grant proposals that would potentially help in identifying the long-term consequences of adolescent binge drinking in the maturation of brain structure and its functions.

In addition, the NIH and NIAAA will utilize this research studies on animal models in order to unravel the underlying effects of excessive alcohol consumption on genetic, molecular and cellular mechanisms.

The scope of the study will include, but is not necessarily limited to:

1) The anatomical or functional studies on cortical synapse pruning or refinement in models of adolescent binge drinking.

  (continued...)

Effects of Adolescent Binge Drinking on Brain Development
  Page 2

About The Author Michael Saunders is an editor of TopGovernmentGrants.com one the the most comprehensive Websites offering information on government grants and federal government programs. He also maintains Websites providing resources on environmental grants and grants for youth programs.

Additional Resources

category - Health Grants

Pilot Surveillance System for High Impact/Low Prevalence Congenital and Inherited Conditions Program
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has recently established the Pilot Surveillance System for High Impact/Low Prevalence Congenital and Inherited Conditions Program wherein it seeks to create and evaluate a surveillance system for congenital and inherited disease conditions.

---

Shared Instrumentation Grant Program
The National Institutes of Health has recently established the Shared Instrumentation Grant Program wherein they intend to solicit applications from NIH-supported research proposing to upgrade or purchase a single piece of expensive instrumentation (useful to the field of science and technology) that at a minimum costs $100,000.

---

Human Health and Heredity in Africa: Research Grants Program
The Human Health and Heredity in Africa: Research Grants Program wherein they intend to invite applications from foreign institutions that are based in African countries who have the desire to conduct scientific studies regarding the genomic/genetic/environmental contributors of human health and diseases which are common in Africa.

---

Grants form the Department of Health and Human Services
In the year 1979, the Department of Health and Human Services, otherwise known as HHS, was established in an effort to protect the health of all Americans and to provide essential human services to everyone, especially to those who are least capable of helping themselves.

---