Volume 15 Issue 3, Fall 2023

David Lovinger, Ph.D., has been selected as the Scientific Director of the Division of Intramural Clinical and Biological Research at the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA).

The National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) recently launched Alcohol and Your Brain, a virtual reality (VR) module to engage and educate young audiences about how alcohol affects the brain. Designed for Oculus Quest, Quest 2, or Meta Quest Pro headsets, this activity takes users on a virtual rollercoaster ride through the brain, with stops to describe alcohol’s harmful effects on the prefrontal cortex, nucleus accumbens, amygdala, hippocampus, and cerebellum.

Since its release just over a year ago, the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) Healthcare Professional’s Core Resource on Alcohol (HPCR) has been the focus of ongoing efforts to empower health care professionals in providing evidence-based alcohol-related care.

“Things I’ve seen through a microscope” is the straightforward way Margaret (Meg) Davis, Ph.D., describes her X, formerly known was Twitter, channel, @BrainsRus. Dr. Davis is a retired National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) neuroscientist and anatomist, who remains dedicated to tweeting about and sharing her fascination with “#SciArt”—the dazzling and colorful scenes visible thanks to innovations in neuroscientific imaging.

Chief, Laboratory of Liver Diseases, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism.