Rutgers Addiction Research Center

08/20/2026

Join the Rutgers Training in Addiction Research Program (TARP) on Tuesday, September 1 at 1:00 p.m. for a hybrid seminar featuring Leslie Ramsey, PhD, of the NIDA Intramural Research Program, and Marco Venniro, PhD, of the University of Maryland School of Medicine.

Dr. Ramsey will discuss neuronal ensembles involved in drug and social learning, while Dr. Venniro will explore the role of social connection in addiction neuroscience.

📍 Deans Conference Room, Busch Campus
💻 Virtual attendance available via Zoom

Learn more: https://loom.ly/gAdRxLA

08/19/2026

RARC Fall Symposium – Wednesday, September 16, 2026 📣

This year’s symposium will feature keynote speaker Yasmin Hurd, PhD, Director of the Addiction Institute at Mount Sinai. Join fellow researchers, clinicians, trainees, and community partners as we celebrate five years of RARC and explore how addiction research at Rutgers is advancing toward real-world impact.

Register today: https://loom.ly/FSuLFRY

Join us for the 2026 RARC Fall Symposium as we celebrate the five-year anniversary of the Rutgers Addiction Research Center. Join […]

08/18/2026

A new RARC blog highlights research examining how day-to-day changes in attention to alcohol-related cues may be linked to drinking risk among young adults.

The study, co-authored by Tammy Chung, professor of psychiatry at Robert Wood Johnson Medical School and director of the Rutgers Center for Population Behavioral Health, found that on days when participants responded faster than usual to alcohol-related words, they also reported a greater desire to get drunk and heavier drinking.

The findings suggest that responses to alcohol cues may reflect temporary shifts in motivation, rather than a fixed characteristic—and could help researchers better understand when drinking risk may increase.

Read more: https://loom.ly/_4DS3Tw

Why do some days bring a stronger urge to drink than others? A new study co-authored by Tammy Chung, a […]

08/17/2026

As students return to campus, the New Jersey Poison Control Center is reminding young adults about the risks of mixing energy drinks with alcohol.

Because caffeine can mask some of alcohol’s effects, people may feel more alert or less intoxicated than they actually are—potentially leading to more drinking, impaired judgment, injuries, or alcohol poisoning.

Diane Calello, executive and medical director of the New Jersey Poison Control Center at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, emphasizes that energy drinks do not make alcohol safer and urges students to seek help right away if someone becomes sick or dangerously intoxicated.

Learn more: https://loom.ly/qfCA0P4

As students prepare for the start of the fall semester, experts with the New Jersey Poison Control Center are warning about the dangers of mixing energy drinks with alcohol. 

08/12/2026

Traumatic experiences can leave lasting fear memories—but how might those memories influence later substance use?

A new preclinical Rutgers study examined how learned fear affected later cocaine use and brain activity in rats. Researchers found that prior fear conditioning increased cocaine-related behaviors in male, but not female, rats and was associated with changes in the amygdala, a brain region involved in emotional learning and memory.

The findings offer an early step toward understanding the complex biological relationship between trauma, PTSD, and substance use disorders—and highlight why studying sex differences is an important part of that work.

👉 Swipe through to learn what the researchers found, what was happening in the brain, and why these findings matter.

🔗 Read the full RARC Research Spotlight: https://loom.ly/sV5U2dQ

08/11/2026

Substance use appears to be declining among many young Americans—but the story is more complex than the numbers alone.

New national data from SAMHSA show decreases in alcohol, tobacco, and illicit drug use among U.S. adolescents and young adults. In a recent ABC News article, Rutgers researcher Denise Hien discusses how factors such as public health messaging and family influence may be contributing to these trends.

She also notes that substance use patterns may be shifting, with vaping and cannabis use becoming more prominent among younger populations.

Read more about what the latest data may tell us about changing substance use among young people: https://loom.ly/AV9JrxA

New federal data shows that alcohol, cigarette and some drug use is declining among American youth and young adults. Public health specialists explain why.

08/10/2026

How might traumatic fear memories influence later cocaine use?

In a new preclinical study, RARC/BHI researcher Chris Pierce and colleagues examined how prior fear conditioning affected subsequent cocaine use in rats. The researchers found that fear conditioning increased cocaine intake in male rats and identified changes in the amygdala, a brain region involved in emotional learning and memory.

In this short video, Dr. Pierce explains what the team found, why these results are an important first step, and how better understanding the brain mechanisms connecting trauma and substance use could eventually help inform approaches for people with co-occurring PTSD and cocaine use disorder.

Read more: https://loom.ly/sV5U2dQ

08/07/2026

Calling early-career addiction researchers 📣 Applications are open for the Early Career Investigator Showcase Travel Award to attend the 2026 NIDA–NIAAA Frontiers in Addiction Research Mini-Convention, an official Society for Neuroscience satellite event.

Selected investigators will have the opportunity to present their research at the Early Career Investigator Showcase Symposium on Friday, November 13, 2026, connect with leading addiction researchers, and receive travel support.

📅 Application deadline: Friday, August 14, 2026
📧 Submit applications to [email protected]
🔗 Learn more: https://loom.ly/ouND5N0

08/06/2026

Dr. Lia Nower, Director of the Rutgers Center for Gambling Studies, was quoted in The Guardian on New York’s lawsuit against prediction market operator Kalshi and the growing debate over whether prediction markets should be regulated as gambling.

The article explores concerns that these platforms may operate without many of the consumer protections, age restrictions, and problem gambling safeguards required of licensed gambling operators.

Dr. Nower emphasized that engaging in more types of gambling is associated with greater risk for gambling-related problems. She cautioned that unregulated prediction markets could add to existing gambling exposure and contribute to rising rates of problem gambling.

Read the article: https://loom.ly/l9OpL6g