Minutes of the 81st Meeting of the National Advisory Council on Drug Abuse

May 22, 2002

The National Advisory Council on Drug Abuse convened its 81st meeting at 9:00 a.m. on May 22, 2002 in Conference Room C, Neuroscience Center, National Institutes of Health, 6001 Executive Boulevard, Bethesda, Maryland. Dr. Glen R. Hanson, Acting Director, NIDA, chaired the overall meeting and Mr. Richard A. Millstein, Deputy Director, NIDA, chaired the application reviews. The first part of the meeting was for the purpose of reviewing applications for federal grant assistance and was open only to Council members and Federal employees. The second part of the meeting was open to the public. The Council adjourned May 22 at 3:20 p.m.

Council Members Present:

Kathleen T. Brady, M.D., Ph.D.
Dorothy K. Hatsukami, Ph.D.
Steven C. Hayes, Ph.D.
Kenneth J. Hoffman, M.D., M.P.H. (ex officio)
Nancy J. Kaufman, R.N., M.S.
G. Alan Marlatt, Ph.D.
A. Thomas McLellan, Ph.D.
Scott A. Reines, M.D., Ph.D.
David L. Rosenbloom, Ph.D.
Kathy Sanders-Phillips, Ph.D.
James E. Smith, Ph.D.
Jose Szapocznik, Ph.D.
David Vlahov, Ph.D.
Robert L. Woodson, Sr.
Nancy R. Zahniser, Ph.D.

Council Members Absent:

Norman B. Anderson, Ph.D.
Robert C. Malenka, M.D., Ph.D.
Perry F. Renshaw, M.D., Ph.D.
Peggy B. Sapp
Richard T. Suchinsky, M.D. (ex-officio)

Council Chairs Present:

Glen R. Hanson, Ph.D., D.D.S.
Richard A. Millstein, J.D.

Executive Secretary:

Teresa Levitin, Ph.D.

Federal Employees Present:

National Institute on Drug Abuse

Other Federal Employees Present:

Della Hann, Ph.D. - OD, Office of Extramural Research, NIH
Theresa Montini, Ph.D. - Center for Scientific Review, NIH
Luci Roberts, Ph.D. - Center for Scientific Review, NIH
Laurence Stanford, Ph.D. - National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, NIH
Denise Wiesch, Ph.D. - Center for Scientific Review, NIH

Members of the Public Present:

John Avery - NAADAC
Jodi Baumgardner - American Public Health Association
Sue Camaione - MasiMax Resources
Marie Dyak - Entertainment Industries Council
Meg Diggin - Social and Scientific Systems
Glen Fischer - Management Assistance Corporation
Rebecca Goodman - Society for Research in Child Development
Mary Beth Hahn - MasiMax Resources
Jim Harvey - Analytical Sciences, Inc.
Linda Wolf-Jones, D.S.W. - Therapeutic Communities of America
Marian Kratage - MasiMax Resources
Susan Loveland - American College Health Association
Robert Mathias - MasiMax Resources, Inc.
Paul Moore - Capitol Publications
Geoffrey Mumford, Ph.D. - American Psychological Association
Anthony Salandy - Society for Research in Child Development
Barbara Sut - Institute for the Advancement of Social Work Research
Daniel Tisch - MasiMax Resources
Patrick Zickler - MasiMax Resources
Laura Zimmerman - American Public Health Association

1. Call to Order

   This portion of the meeting was closed to the public in accordance with Sections 552b(c) (4) and 552b(c) (6), Title 5, U.S. Code and Section 10(d) of the Federal Advisory Committee Act, as amended (5 U.S.C. Appendix 2).

   Mr. Richard A. Millstein, Deputy Director, NIDA, called the meeting to order and welcomed the Council and staff. He provided an overview of the agenda for the meeting, and reminded those present that the Federal Advisory Committee Act applies to Council meetings and that the meeting was closed to the public. Dr. Teresa Levitin, Executive Secretary, summarized Council functions and voting policies and procedures. She also reminded those present about NIH confidentiality and conflict of interest policies.

2. Application Reviews

   In turn, the Director or a designee for the Office of Science Policy and Communications; the Division of Treatment Research and Development; the Division of Epidemiology, Services and Prevention Research; the Division of Neuroscience and Behavioral Research; and the Center on AIDS and Other Medical Consequences of Drug Abuse presented their applications for consideration by the Council. For each, Council provided concurrence with the initial scientific reviews en bloc. Requests for MERIT extensions and administrative supplements were also reviewed and approved.

   Members must absent themselves from the Council meetings during discussion of, and voting on, applications from their own institutions or other applications in which there is a conflict of interest, real or apparent. Conflict of interest statements were signed by each member. Members were not required to leave if an application in conflict with that member was acted upon en bloc.

   For this Council, 519 applications, requesting $558,262,993 in Total Years Direct Costs, went to review. Of these, 333 were scored by the Scientific Review Groups, representing $88,913,040 in First Year Direct Costs and $395,285,748 in Total Years Direct Costs. Council concurred with the SRGs in time and amount. The Council approved four administrative supplements and two MERIT extensions.

1. Call to Order

   Dr. Glen R. Hanson called the open portion of the meeting to order and welcomed the Council members, NIDA staff, and visitors. Dr. Hanson introduced and thanked the new members who were present, Dr. Dorothy Hatsukami, Dr. David Vlahov, Mr. Robert Woodson, and Dr. Nancy Zahniser. He noted that Dr. Norman Anderson and Mrs. Peggy Sapp were unable to attend. He announced that this was Dr. Alan Marlatt's last meeting and thanked him for his service. He reminded the Council and audience that the meeting was open to the public in compliance with the Government in the Sunshine Act and indicated that time would be provided for public comment.

2. Consideration of the Minutes of Council

   The Minutes of the February 20, 2002 meeting were approved as written.

3. NIDA Director's Report

   Dr. Hanson welcomed new staff members and reported on other recent changes at NIDA. He introduced Dr. William Corrigall, recently appointed Chief of the Translational Research Branch, DNBR, and Director of the Nicotine and Tobacco Addiction Program. Before coming to NIDA, Dr. Corrigall served as the Director of Smoking and Nicotine Dependence Research at the University of Toronto, Canada, and is a long-time NIDA-funded researcher. Dr. Hanson highlighted recent staff awards, including the Physician Researcher of the Year Award given to Dr. Ahmed Elkashef by the U.S. Public Health Service Commissioned Corps.

   Initiative Implementation

   Dr. Hanson highlighted several recently released Requests for Applications (RFAs). One RFA will support neuroimaging technology development to assess brain and behavior in pediatric populations, mostly adolescents. NIDA's National Prevention Research Initiative (NNPRI) will use three different RFAs to accelerate the development and testing of new prevention interventions. These three RFAs, Using Basic Science to Develop New Directions in Drug Abuse Prevention Research, Community Multi-Site Prevention Trials, and Transdisciplinary Prevention Research Centers, invite research not only in drug abuse prevention, but also drug use-related HIV/AIDS prevention, in different populations and interventions delivered in diverse contexts such as mental health facilities, religious organizations, juvenile justice facilities, or schools. NIDA issued another RFA inviting cooperative agreement applications to participate in the National Criminal Justice Drug Abuse Treatment Research System. Awardees will conduct research with offender populations in coordinated multisite studies. Another RFA would expand the National Drug Abuse Treatment Clinical Trials Network by encouraging trials in geographical areas not currently well represented. Still another will support broad-based research in inhalant abuse, an area that has been problematic among young adolescents for years. Dr. Hanson called attention to several other initiatives addressing areas such as making behavioral therapies more community-friendly; developing new approaches to preventing HIV and other infections in drug users; and the diagnosis, treatment and interaction of Hepatitis C with HIV/AIDS. New NIDA program announcements will support general neuroscience research on drug addiction and research on smoked drugs of abuse. The Imaging - Science Track Award for Research Transition (I/START) program announcement will attract new investigators in the neuroimaging area of research. Dr. Hanson also called attention to numerous RFAs and PAs in which NIDA has collaborated with other Institutes in areas such as the immune system and brain function; transitional and translational research; the ethical, legal and social implications of genetic research; and haplotype mapping.

   Dr. Hanson announced that two public service announcements were produced on inhalant abuse, and 12,500 copies are to be distributed nationwide. He noted that a press conference on inhalants was held during the 10th Annual National Inhalants and Poisons Awareness Week in which NIDA staff, the Office of National Drug Control Policy, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, and others participated.

   Shaping the Research Agenda

   Dr. Hanson highlighted several recent meetings of interest. NIDA hosted a conference, "Blending Clinical Practice and Research: Forging Partnerships to Enhance Drug Addiction Treatment," in New York City on March 14-15, 2002. Over 800 clinicians and researchers had the opportunity to examine the latest findings about drug abuse and addiction and their application to clinical practice. Dr. Hanson reported that the 7th Annual Prism Awards ceremony was held May 9, 2002. This event, co-sponsored with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Entertainment Industries Council, honors creative, contributions that accurately address substance abuse and addiction. He noted that the Center on AIDS and Other Medical Consequences (CAMCODA) held a working meeting on "Strategies to Improve the Replicability, Sustainability, and Durability of HIV Prevention Interventions for Drug Users" on May 6-7, 2002. Experts in the field of HIV prevention exchanged information on their current research and addressed gaps and future directions in this area. NIDA also sponsored a Special Events Program at the Society for Research on Adolescence Biennial Meeting in New Orleans on April 11-14, 2002. This meeting featured a poster and discussion hour focused on child and adolescent research support, a NIDA exhibit booth, and a scientific symposium entitled, "Building Bridges Between Adolescent Research and Substance Abuse Research: Challenges and Opportunities."

   Dr. Hanson highlighted several upcoming meetings of interest. Among the most noteworthy is the XIV International AIDS Conference that will be held in July 2002 in Barcelona, Spain. CAMCODA staff, NIDA grantees and other individuals and organizations developed eight satellite sessions relating to substance abuse and AIDS for this meeting. He also called attention to a newly released guide, Principles of HIV Prevention in Drug-Using Populations - a summary of 15 years of NIDA-sponsored research on drug abuse and HIV/AIDS. Dr. Hanson noted another new publication, Science and Practice Perspectives, Vol. 1, developed by NIDA to enhance the use of research and rapid adaptation of research-based practices in drug abuse treatment.

   Future Directions

   Dr. Hanson reported that the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy has set a goal to decrease drug abuse by 10 percent in two years and by 25 percent in five years. NIDA will play an important role in helping to achieve these objectives. For example, NIDA is looking into partnering with other institutes and pharmaceutical companies in medication development. Dr. Hanson commented that studies are needed on the effects of historical, environmental, and physiological factors and their interactions in the development, progression and treatment of drug abuse and addictions. Future initiatives will target research in a number of areas, such as neuroproteomics, mapping functional circuits in the brain, neural plasticity and long-term changes, protein trafficking, novel drug development, stress and drug abuse, drug abuse relapse, social cognitive neuroscience and HIV/AIDS. The National Drug Abuse Treatment Clinical Trials Network plans to add additional nodes. Dr. Hanson noted that emphasis will be placed on research in Hepatitis C in the drug abuse population, street youth and AIDS, and AIDS in disabled populations. He asked for feedback on what directions NIDA should take and what should be emphasized. Council members discussed using a nonhuman primate model for adolescent research, using faith-based organizations to provide interventions, collaborating with the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism to look at various types of comorbidity, and training on utilization of medications and behavioral interventions.

4. New Horizons in Health: An Integrative Approach - Dr. Raynard Kington

   Dr. Hanson introduced Dr. Raynard Kington, Associate Director for Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR), Office of the Director, NIH, and Acting Director of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism. Dr. Kington outlined the history of OBSSR. Created by Congress in 1995, OBSSR has a three-fold mission to: 1) enhance behavioral and social sciences research and training; 2) promote a biobehavioral, interdisciplinary perspective across NIH; and 3) improve communication among health scientists and the public. These goals are achieved by working collaboratively with NIH institutes and centers to develop a research plan to guide NIH in supporting areas of behavioral and social sciences. As an example of its work, Dr. Kington described how OBSSR formed a committee of 15 behavioral and social scientists to develop a research plan to guide NIH in supporting high priority areas, focusing on common interests across institutes and centers, areas of greatest scientific payoff, and areas most important to public health. The report from this committee identified 10 areas of importance in the behavioral and social sciences for the NIH to address. One of these areas, predisease pathways, would look at prenatal and early life risk factors as an early-warning system. Another would look at the environment and gene expression. Dr. Kington commented that this research is in the earliest stages of understanding the complex interactions between genetic factors and environmental factors on health outcomes. Another area of importance, social factors, would look at how personal ties, healthy communities and population health influence health outcomes. Studies on how socioeconomic status, racial and ethnic hierarchies, discrimination and stigmatization influence health are important. Also of importance is studying positive health -- shifting our thinking from illness and disease to wellness, good health, and optimal human functioning. Dr. Kington concluded that OBSSR will take every opportunity to work collaboratively with NIDA and other Institutes and Centers on health disparities research. In his role of Acting Director, NIAAA, Dr. Kington noted the importance of developing and nurturing collaborative work between NIAAA and NIDA. Dr. Hanson agreed that the two Institutes should work on joint initiatives and report these to Council.

5. Evaluation of ONDCP's National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign: Current Findings - Dr. James Colliver

   Dr. Colliver gave an overview of the history of NIDA's evaluation of the Office of National Drug Control Policy's (ONDCP) National Youth Anti-Drug Media Campaign. He noted that in 1998 ONDCP asked NIDA to conduct an independent science-based evaluation of this Campaign. NIDA convened a panel of methodology experts to advise on measurement and study design, issued a request for contract proposals, and, in the fall of 1998, initiated a contract with Westat and the Annenberg School for Communication to conduct the study. During 1999 the contractor designed and initiated a nationally representative household survey of youth and parents living in the same household, The National Survey of Parents and Youth (NSPY). The first reports from the study were published in September of 2000. The evaluation, which is an ongoing project with reports every six months to provide regular feedback to the campaign, looks for (1) changes in beliefs, attitudes and behaviors targeted by the campaign both for youth and for parents, and (2) evidence of whether changes can be attributed to the campaign. Seven semiannual waves of data collection and seven reports are planned; the current report covers data collection through Wave 4, which provides the first followup data for a portion of the sample. The samples total 8,100 youth and 5,600 parents, and have both longitudinal and cross-sectional components. The areas covered for youth include exposure to anti-drug messages, beliefs and attitudes about drug use, intentions to use, and actual use, particularly initiation of use between longitudinal waves. Areas covered for parents include exposure to anti-drug parenting messages, attitudes and beliefs about talking to their children about not using drugs, actually talking to them, attitudes and beliefs about monitoring their children and actually monitoring them. Dr. Colliver showed a short video of a campaign ad directed at both parents and youth. He noted that key findings from Wave 4 showed that campaign exposure is favorably associated with targeted beliefs and behaviors in parents, but in youth there was no evidence of direct positive campaign effects and some suggestion of possible negative effects in some of the analyses. He emphasized, however, that these were initial longitudinal findings based on 40 percent of the sample and that results may differ when the longitudinal data from the remainder of the sample are available and analyzed. Dr. Colliver noted that the executive summary and the complete Wave 4 report will be available in June and can be found on the NIDA website.

6. The Loan Repayment Program for Clinical Researchers: Background and Outcome - Dr. Lucinda Miner

   Dr. Miner described the NIH Extramural Loan Repayment Program as a program for qualified health professionals who contract with the Federal government to conduct clinical research. It was established by Public Law in November 2000 as part of the Clinical Research Enhancement Act. She noted that to be eligible applicants must be U.S. citizens, possess a clinical degree, have an educational debt in excess of 20 percent of income, and have NIH support. Repayment benefits up to a maximum of $35,000 per year are made directly to the lender. Dr. Miner noted that in January 2002 a Notice was placed in the NIH Guide and posted on the NIDA website that applications would be accepted. She added that NIDA staff emailed notices to training grant directors, relevant constituent organizations, listserve members and others. Applications were accepted online. Dr. Miner reported that NIH received over 600 applications and 26 were assigned to NIDA for review. Reviewers were asked to assess the applicant's potential for a research career in clinical or pediatric research, concentrating on the applicant's research career goals and whether the environment would enable the goals to be accomplished. Dr. Miner concluded by saying that next year the program also will include applicants whose research is supported by foundations, professional societies and other nonprofit sources in addition to NIH.

7. Public Comments

   Dr. Hanson opened the floor to comments from members of the public. There were no comments from the public.

The 81st meeting of the National Advisory Council on Drug Abuse was adjourned at 3:20 p.m.

Certification

I hereby certify that the foregoing minutes are accurate and complete.

Note: Informational materials provided to the public at the open session of the meeting may be obtained from the Executive Secretary.