This is the first resubmission of a K23 Mentored Patient-Oriented Research Career Award application to provide James MacKillop, PhD, with the necessary mentorship and training to conduct high-quality research using behavioral economics to enhance research on pharmacotherapies for alcoholism. A behavioral economic approach may enhance pharmacotherapy research by focusing on medication effects on the relative value of alcohol, facilitating mechanistic analyses, and providing greater translational consilience. The Career Development/Training Plan includes training in: 1) neuroscience and neuropharmacology;2) laboratory methods in alcoholism pharmacotherapy research;3) clinical methods for alcoholism pharmacotherapy research;4) advanced behavioral economics;5) professional development;6) responsible conduct of research. The training will be overseen by a mentorship team comprised of Robert Swift, MD, PhD (Sponsor), Peter Monti, PhD (Co-Sponsor), Jennifer Tidey, PhD (Advisor), and Robert Miranda, Jr., PhD (Advisor). The training plan also includes an empirical research project using behavioral economics to examine the effects of topiramate (TOP), a promising novel pharmacotherapy. The proposed study will recruit 60 alcohol dependent individuals who are not seeking treatment and study the effects of TOP under neutral conditions and during the ascending limb of the blood alcohol curve, using a 2 (TOP 300 mg/placebo) X 2 (neutral/ascending limb) mixed design. Based on its putative neuropharmacological actions and correlational clinical data, TOP is predicted to reduce the relative value of alcohol on two behavioral economic measures and potential mediators of TOP'S effects will be examined. For exploratory purposes, the effects of TOP will also be examined during the descending limb of the blood alcohol curve. In addition to serving as critical training, this research may have important clinical and methodological implications.

Public Health Relevance

OF THE RESEARCH TO PUBLIC HEALTH: Medications for treating alcoholism have considerable promise and behavioral economics may enhance research in this area. This K23 Mentored Patient-Oriented Research Career Award proposal is for Dr. James MacKillop to gain the expertise to conduct such research. The training plan includes mentorship, training, and a research study using behavioral economics to study the effects of topiramate, a promising medication for alcoholism.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA)
Type
Mentored Patient-Oriented Research Career Development Award (K23)
Project #
5K23AA016936-04
Application #
7919971
Study Section
Health Services Research Review Subcommittee (AA)
Program Officer
Litten, Raye Z
Project Start
2008-09-25
Project End
2013-08-31
Budget Start
2010-09-01
Budget End
2011-08-31
Support Year
4
Fiscal Year
2010
Total Cost
$152,917
Indirect Cost
Name
University of Georgia
Department
Psychology
Type
Schools of Arts and Sciences
DUNS #
004315578
City
Athens
State
GA
Country
United States
Zip Code
30602
Owens, Max M; MacKillop, James; Gray, Joshua C et al. (2017) Neural correlates of graphic cigarette warning labels predict smoking cessation relapse. Psychiatry Res Neuroimaging 262:63-70
Morris, Vanessa; Amlung, Michael; Kaplan, Brent A et al. (2017) Using crowdsourcing to examine behavioral economic measures of alcohol value and proportionate alcohol reinforcement. Exp Clin Psychopharmacol 25:314-321
Gray, Joshua C; Amlung, Michael T; Owens, Max et al. (2017) The Neuroeconomics of Tobacco Demand: An Initial Investigation of the Neural Correlates of Cigarette Cost-Benefit Decision Making in Male Smokers. Sci Rep 7:41930
MacKillop, James (2016) The Behavioral Economics and Neuroeconomics of Alcohol Use Disorders. Alcohol Clin Exp Res 40:672-85
VanderBroek, Lauren; Acker, John; Palmer, Abraham A et al. (2016) Interrelationships among parental family history of substance misuse, delay discounting, and personal substance use. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 233:39-48
Metrik, Jane; Aston, Elizabeth R; Kahler, Christopher W et al. (2016) Cue-elicited increases in incentive salience for marijuana: Craving, demand, and attentional bias. Drug Alcohol Depend 167:82-8
Celio, Mark A; MacKillop, James; Caswell, Amy J et al. (2016) Interactive Relationships Between Sex-Related Alcohol Expectancies and Delay Discounting on Risky Sex. Alcohol Clin Exp Res 40:638-46
Owens, Max M; Ray, Lara A; MacKillop, James (2015) Behavioral economic analysis of stress effects on acute motivation for alcohol. J Exp Anal Behav 103:77-86
Amlung, Michael; MacKillop, James (2015) Further evidence of close correspondence for alcohol demand decision making for hypothetical and incentivized rewards. Behav Processes 113:187-91
MacKillop, James; Celio, Mark A; Mastroleo, Nadine R et al. (2015) Behavioral economic decision making and alcohol-related sexual risk behavior. AIDS Behav 19:450-8

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