Training & Education

The Education Mission

The education mission of the CTNA is focused on reaching the Yale community, the Connecticut area community, and the New England region. Following are listing of educational sessions planned for the future and those that have already taken place under CTNA sponsorship.

COMPLETED ACTIVITIES

CTNA Guest Speaker April 24, 2006

Andrew Heath DPhil , Spencer T. Olin Professor of Psychiatry
Director, Midwest Alcoholism Research Center, University of Washington, St Louis, tel 314/286-2206, andrew@matlock.wustl.edu

Topic: Genetic and environmental contributions to risk for alcoholism
Dr. Heath discussed behavioral and psychiatric genetics, genetic epidemiology, particularly focusing on the interplay of genetic and environmental risk factors in the etiology of substance use disorder, affective and personality disorders. He described his prospective studies of high-risk adolescent twins/siblings and their families, and of twin pairs and their adolescent offspring.  His research includes formulation of models to resolve the joint contributions of genetic and environmental risk factors, and their covariation and interaction, to risk of psychiatric disorder and behavioral variation. (Slides)

ICANA: INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON APPLICATIONS OF NEUROIMAGING TO ALCOHOLISM

January 17-19, 2004
THE INTERNATIONAL CONFERENCE ON APPLICATIONS OF NEUROIMAGING TO ALCOHOLISM (ICANA) was held on the Medical Campus of Yale University in New Haven, CT, USA on January 17-19, 2004. The meeting was hosted by the NIAAA Center for the Translational Neuroscience of Alcoholism (CTNA). Sessions combined methodology and applications to alcoholism and will highlight MRI, fMRI, DTI, MRS, PET, and SPECT research. Cutting edge molecular neuroimaging and clinical correlates will be highlighte. (see link on left side of screen).

ICANA received international attention with the publication of an article in the Journal of the American Medical Association describing the highlights of the conference (Vastag B, Brain sabotages sobriety, right on cue. JAMA 2004; 291: 1053-1055).
ICANA also provided an opportunity to foster collaborations between German and American scientists. Margaret Murray (NIAAA) organized a post-conference meeting with a representative of the German Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung (BMBF) to develop ideas for international programs.

NIAAA's National Alcoholism Screening Day - April 2003

Dr. John Krystal (CTNA Director) gave the keynote lecture for NIAAA's National Alcoholism Screening Day 2003 in the form of the "Bench to Bedside" Clinical Grand Rounds for the National Institutes of Health. The title of his presentation was: "A problem with the brakes? Glutamatergic contributions to alcoholism."

The presentation was videotaped and simulcast on the web. This lecture may be viewed (using RealOne, downloadable at no cost from "realplayer.com"): Krystal Lecture (March 26, 2003)

Alcohol and Tobacco Use: A Community Conference On Prevention and Treatment
New Haven, CT - November 23, 2002

The use of tobacco and alcohol among adolescents and dependence of these substances in adults is of tremendous concern to both scientific researchers and community leaders. To help address those concerns, two groups from Yale sponsored a community conference on alcohol and tobacco Saturday, November 23, 2002, at the Hill Regional Career High School in New Haven.

The conference was sponsored by the Center for Translational Neuroscience of Alcoholism, led by Dr. John Krystal, and the Transdisciplinary Tobacco Use Research Center at Yale, led by Dr. Stephanie O'Malley. Dr. David Kessler, Dean of the Yale School of Medicine, who is well known for his concerns about tobacco, welcomed the participants and guests. Representative Patricia Dillon noted the importance of these problems and how much support has been provided by the State of Connecticut to reduce drinking and smoking. Dr. Benjamin Bunney, Chairman of the Psychiatry Department, introduced the conference speakers.

Dean Wilkerson, Executive Director of Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD), described efforts to advocate for specific legislation designed to reduce the number of drinking related driving fatalities, utilizing arguments based on research findings.

"Both drinking and smoking are enormous causes of illness and disability in our society," said Dr. John Krystal, CTNA Director. "The use of alcohol and drugs often goes together, and the use of one might lead to the use of the other. Of further concern is the role these substances play as gateways to other substance abuse, including cocaine and opiates."

Dr. Krystal explained how alcohol and tobacco affect neurotransmitters in the brain, using the baseball player, Mickey Mantle, as an example. He demonstrated that deficits occur everywhere in the body, with particular impact on the brain. Using examples of types of brain images, he showed how CTNA research is teaching us about the links between chemical messengers and function.

"This is how research translates into practice, both at the clinical and policy level," said Stephanie O'Malley, President of the Research Society on Alcoholism. "We can show what we know about alcohol and tobacco use in adolescents, and the latest findings on prevention. But we need to learn more about who gets into trouble and the difference between experimenting and getting hooked."

The effects of alcohol and smoking are well known, but adolescents are the least likely population to think they are vulnerable. Dr. Suchitra Krishnan-Sarin reviewed approaches to educating people about their health risks.

Approaches to treatment using behavioral interventions were described by Dr. Judith Cooney, University of Connecticut. "Doctors need a simple method to counsel patients in the midst of a busy primary care office visit," said Cooney. Dr. O'Malley described the types of medications used to treat alcoholism. She noted that: "Although the available medications are not highly effective alone, research is ongoing to determine whether a combination of medications might be superior."

The conference focused on both tobacco and alcohol because the two legal drugs tend to be co-used and the use of one can alter the way the other substance affects the body and its systems. "These are the most frequently used substances by adolescents and the most prevalent substance abuse problems in this country," Dr. O'Malley said.

Community participants talked with research groups at their posters to learn about ongoing and upcoming Yale studies that can help people with alcohol and tobacco problems. Alcohol research programs include programs that can help people with drinking problems quit drinking. Other studies are designed to develop a better understanding of alcohol effects and how treatments might work. At the same time, these studies will provide important information to research investigating these problems.

The Center for the Translational Neuroscience of Alcoholism was formed to create links
between basic research advances and the development of new treatments for alcoholism.
It receives funding from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.

The Transdisciplinary Tobacco Use Research Center is funded by the National Instituteon Drug Abuse, the National Cancer Institute and The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

CTNA Seminars

Jellinek Symposium: Nora Volkow PhD, Director, NIDA, March 2004: Dr. Volkow was the keynote speaker for this annual seminar. She discussed: "Why does the brain become addicted." This symposium may be viewed (using RealOne, downloadable at no cost from "realplayer.com"): Volkow Lecture

Marc N. Potenza, MD, PhD (Yale) March 2004: "Relationships among gambling, smoking and drinking"

Patrick Allen PhD (Yale) February 2004: "Molecular Consequences of Chronic Ethanol Administration in rats"

Robert Swift MD, PhD, Brown University January 2004: "Overview of Data Safety Monitoring Board activities for CTNA"

Jellinek Symposium: Alan Marlatt PhD, Addictive Behaviors Research Center, Uinversity of Washington, March 2003: "Prevention of Drinking Problems on Campus: Results of a Brief Intervention Program with High-Risk Students" Marlatt Lecture

Gary S. Wand, MD., Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, February 2003, TTURC-BSTP-CTNA Seminar: "cAMP/PKA Signaling Modulates Ethanol Consumption and Sedative Effects of Ethanol"

Dee Higley, PhD, NIAAA, October 2002: BSTP/CTNA Seminar
A nonhuman primate model of risk factors for Type II-like excessive alcohol intake and impulse control deficits: Gene-environment interactions

Jellinek Symposium:Victor Hesselbrock PhD, University of Connecticut Health Center, May 2002:"Genetic Perspectives on Suicidality, Suicide Attempts, and Suicide"

He described preliminary data on risks of suicidality based on the ongoing COGA study. This symposium may be viewed (using RealOne, downloadable at no cost from "realplayer.com"): Hesselbrock Lecture

Jellinek Symposium, T. K. Li, March 2002: The Disease Concept of Alcoholism in the Genomic Era. The keynote speaker for this annual event was Dr. Ting-Kai Li who visited from the University of Indiana, Department of Medicine (before becoming the Director of NIAAA). He described his research on the disease concept of alcoholism in the genomic era. Other speakers were Dr. Jaakko Lappalainen (Yale) who described recent genetic findings and Dr. Ismene Petrakis (Yale) who reported on cue reactivity differences between healthy subjects with and without a family history of alcoholism. This symposium may be viewed (using RealOne, downloadable at no cost from "realplayer.com"at: "Jellinek Symposium"

Seminar on the Targeted Use of Naltrexone, January 23, 2002. The guest speaker for this seminar was J. David Sinclair PhD, who visited from the Department of Mental Health and Alcohol Research, Helsinki, Finland (david.sinclair@ktl.fi). CTNA cosponsored the event with the TTURC. Dr. Sinclair described a program he has used in Finland to initiate naltrexone while people are continuing to drink. He theorizes that extinction occurs when the drinking behavior is modified. Dr. Stephanie O'Malley, TTURC Director, also presented data from her study of women that support this theory.

Conferencia Aprendamos de Problemas Emociaonales Y Addiciones, October 6, 2001. This seminar was conducted in Spanish for the New Haven community. CTNA cosponsored the day-long event with NAMI, Yale Department of Psychiatry, and the Connecticut Department of Mental Health Services. Speakers from Connecticut and Puerto Rico discussed issues related to addiction and treatment.

The Training Mission

The training mission of the CTNA is integral to its overall academic mission. This mission has two levels of organization: local (within Yale) and regional. It also has two foci: research training and more general continuing education aimed at professional and lay audiences. To accomplish these objectives, the CTNA will have two training committees: 1) a Local Education Committee (LEC) and 2) a Regional Education Committee that includes representatives from Yale, the University of Connecticut, Columbia, Brown, and Harvard.

The Local Education Committee is comprised of representatives of the neuroscience training programs within the Yale Community including J. Krystal (VYARC and VA Substance Abuse Training Program), G. Heninger (NIMH Clinical Neuroscience Training Program), R. Duman (NIMH Biological Sciences Training Program (BSTP), Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program), G. Mason (NINDS Neuroimaging Scientist Training Program, NISTP), S. O'Malley (Division of Substance Abuse Training Program{DSATP}), I. Petrakis (VASAP, RWJ CADRE, NIDA SAF), B. Rounsaville (NIDA K12, MIRECC). This group also includes the leadership of the following weekly seminar series: 1) Neuroscience Seminar Series (BSTP), 2) Division of Substance Abuse Seminar Series (DSATP), 3) NISTP Seminar Series, 4) Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy Seminar Series (G. Mason), 5) Cognitive Neuroscience Seminar (J. Krystal), 5) Neurobiology Seminar Series, 6) NISTP Seminar Series (G. Mason) and 7) the Yale Department of Psychiatry Grand Rounds. The LEC aim is to insure that alcoholism research training is integrated into all Yale neuroscience training programs in the following ways: 1) to encourage the recruitment of research trainees with alcoholism research interests, 2) to insure that research trainees associated with the CTNA present to an appropriate research audience at least annually, 3) to support a journal club in alcoholism research, and 4) to meet annually with each alcoholism research trainee to monitor their progress and to provide additional career development support. Additional research training activities are encompassed by the REC. The activities of the LEC are explicated in greater detail in the section describing the Executive Core.

The Regional Education Committee is designed to take full advantage of the fact that the CTNA is located in a region where established alcoholism research programs have long-standing and highly productive records of collaboration. The collaborating institutions include Yale, the University of Connecticut (V. Hesselbrock), Brown University (R. Swift), Columbia University (A. Abi-Dargham), Harvard University (D. Gastfiend, M. Charness), and Boston University (D. Cirraulo). Historically, each Center had a distinct research focus and thus they developed complementary areas of expertise. In addition, these institutions have developed productive training programs in alcoholism research. Thus, collectively, many research training, continuing education, and public education objectives of the CTNA may be achieved to a greater extent through collaboration with neighboring institutions. The REC has the following initial objectives: 1) to develop and maintain a Web site that presents a) research findings from each institution, b) describes training opportunities at each institution, c) announces upcoming seminars at each institution, d) makes available videotaped recordings of selected research presentations from each institution, e) makes available selected educational videotapes and other materials developed at each institution, and f) promote links to other important web-based resources (e.g., NIAAA, other ARC web pages, etc.); 2) to develop the annual E.M. Jellinek Award Lectureship at Yale into a day-long regional symposium on alcoholism research that provides an opportunity for research trainees and junior faculty from each institution to present research findings and develop cross-institutional collegiality; 3) to work collaboratively on a regional and national basis to educate the lay public and policy makers regarding advances in alcoholism research through joint sponsorship of an annual symposium aimed at the lay public, development of press releases related to advances in alcoholism research, and fostering close communications between the REC and the Research Society on Alcoholism Committee on Government Affairs.