What are the effects of alcoholism on the immune system? Drs. Crews, Zou and Coleman researched the responses of the neuroimmune system to alcohol.  They found that a pro-inflammatory protein complex – the HMGB1-IL 1b complex – is more common in people who suffer from alcohol-use disorder. By studying this complex in brain cultures, they … Read more

The center, established 20 years ago and led by Fulton Crews, PhD, will receive more than $8.7 million over five years to continue research on the effects of alcohol on the brain.

The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism has awarded a 5-year K08 Career Development Award to Leon G. Coleman Jr, MD, PhD of the Bowles Center for Alcohol Studies, to study the central and peripheral immune responses to ethanol. Alcohol abuse causes dysfunction of immune responses both in the brain and the periphery. Immune … Read more

Dr. Scott Swartzwelder, (shown on the right) professor of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the Duke Institute for Brain Sciences, has received the 2017 Bowles Award from the UNC School of Medicine’s Bowles Center for Alcohol Studies. The award honors distinguished researchers who have made significant contributions to understanding the causes, prevention and/or treatment of … Read more

Dr. Susan Smith, a world renowned expert in Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) research has joined UNC as Deputy Director of the Nutrition Research Institute. Her work focuses on risk factors for development of FASD as well as strategies for treatment in both children and adults who suffer with FASD. Dr. Smith will join the … Read more

The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism has awarded a $1.9 million, 5-year grant to Joyce Besheer, PhD, of the Bowles Center for Alcohol Studies, to study the underlying neuropathy of post-traumatic stress disorder and alcohol abuse. click to enlarge Joyce Besheer, PhD Post-Traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a debilitating and enduring disorder that … Read more

Karen Boschen, a postdoctoral fellow in the Parnell Lab, won the Wilson Presentation Award at the 2017 Annual Teratology Society meeting in Denver, CO for her talk entitled “Changes to Primary Cilia Number and Function in the Neural Tube Following Neurulation-Stage Ethanol Exposure in a Mouse Model of FASD.”

Tentative Schedule for Fall 2017: Monday, August 28th Amanda Elton, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Trainee, Psychology and Neuroscience, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. “COMT Val158Met polymorphism exerts sex-dependent effects on fMRI measures of brain function.” Lara Hwa, Ph.D., Postdoctoral Trainee, Bowles Center for Alcohol Studies, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. “Intermittent alcohol drinking … Read more

Study confirms link between alcohol consumption, breast cancer risk in black women In findings published in the journal Cancer, Epidemiology, Biomarkers & Prevention, UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center researchers confirmed the link between alcohol consumption and breast cancer risk in a study in black women. The association has been seen in other studies drawn from … Read more

BCAS helps kids mark 2017 Brain Awareness Week Faculty, research associates and students from UNC’s Bowles Center for Alcohol Studies staffed Brain Awareness Week events in March, with support from the Museum of Life and Science in Durham. The event was covered by WRAL-TV and other area media. http://www.wral.com/life-and-science-museum-marks-brain-awareness-week/16572236/