This Project Grant award from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), under the federal Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs (CFDA 93.279), aims to elucidate the corticolimbic circuit and neuroimmune mechanisms underlying the comorbidity of HIV and cocaine use disorders (CUDs). The $157,568 award, effective from November 13, 2024 to June 30, 2026, will support research at Drexel University to: Use circuit-specific optogenetic stimulation to rescue HIV-induced deficits in extinction...
This $1,537,749 Project Grant award from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) under the Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs (CFDA 93.279) aims to investigate the molecular mechanisms by which HIV proteins and methamphetamine activate the astrocyte-specific NLRP6 inflammasome, leading to neuroinflammation in the context of HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders. The award, with a project period from July 1, 2024 to April 30, 2029, will support in vitro, ex vivo, and in vivo...
This $1,742,971 federal Project Grant award from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) under the Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs (CFDA 93.279) will fund research to investigate the epigenetic regulation of HIV/SIV and cocaine-induced inflammasome activation, and the potential therapeutic benefits of combining cannabinoids with antiretroviral therapy. The key objectives are to: 1) Examine the epigenetic mechanisms underlying cannabinoid-mediated reduction of cocaine-induced...
This federal Project Grant award from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), under the Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs (CFDA 93.279), provides $454,470 to Drexel University to develop a new imaging pipeline and analytical approach to study the role of epigenetic modifications, specifically histone dopaminylation, in cocaine relapse behaviors in a mouse model of HIV infection. The key products and services to be delivered include: Developing an imaging approach to examine...
This $492,000 Project Grant award from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) under the Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs (CFDA 93.279) supports a multidimensional investigation into the genetic and epigenetic factors underlying cocaine addiction. The University of Chicago, the awardee, will conduct high-resolution chromatin accessibility and DNA methylation profiling to delineate cell-type and circuit-specific epigenetic configurations following cocaine self-administration in...
This Project Grant award from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), under the federal Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs (CFDA 93.279), will support research at Drexel University to investigate the impact of HIV infection on estrous cycling and cocaine-related behaviors in an animal model. The overarching goal is to determine how HIV infection dysregulates the medial preoptic area (MPOA) of the hypothalamus, leading to altered estradiol signaling and enhanced cocaine-induced...
This Project Grant award from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), under the Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs (CFDA 93.279), provides $263,119 to The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) to develop NLRP3 inhibitors for treating HIV-associated neuroinflammation in cocaine users. The key products and services to be delivered through this 2-year award include: 1) computer-assisted design, synthesis, and characterization of novel NLRP3 inhibitor compounds based on the lead...
This federal Project Grant award from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), under the Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs (CFDA 93.279), provides $146,922.00 to The Johns Hopkins University to conduct research on "ENDOCANNABINOID MODULATION OF THE HIV-INDUCED MICROGLIAL INFLAMMATORY RESPONSE." The award, with a start date of December 17, 2024 and an ultimate completion date of June 16, 2026, will support cutting-edge scientific research to advance understanding of the...
This Project Grant award from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) under the Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs (CFDA 93.279) supports a study titled "Methamphetamine Activation of Inflammasome and Altered Immunity in HIV (MAIA)". The $1,481,760 award, spanning from September 30, 2024 to July 31, 2029, will be conducted by Emory University to investigate how methamphetamine exposure leads to inflammasome activation and immune dysfunction in people living with HIV on...
This federal Project Grant award from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), under the Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs (CFDA 93.279), provides $1,372,480.00 to the University of Nebraska Medical Center (UNMC) to conduct research on the interplay between HIV Tat protein, cocaine, and combination antiretroviral therapy (cART) in driving microglial pyroptosis and neuroinflammation in the context of HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders (HAND). The research aims to elucidate the...
This Project Grant award from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA), under the Drug Use and Addiction Research Programs (CFDA 93.279), will support research on the role of endothelial injury and myeloid cell migration in the activation of inflammasomes in HIV infection and cocaine exposure. The $695,250 award, with a period of performance from September 30, 2024 to August 31, 2026, will be utilized by Howard University to characterize myeloid cell populations in the brains of HIV-transgenic mice under chronic cocaine treatment, and evaluate the accumulation of perivascular macrophages and microglia around blood vessels after cocaine exposure. The goal is to determine if cocaine-induced endothelial damage enhances inflammasome activation and increases the accumulation of myeloid cells around blood vessels, which could inform the development of novel therapeutic treatments to inhibit HIV-1 transcription or decrease brain endothelial injury.