Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41017297›Full record

ReviewAlcohol, clinical & experimental research2025

The alcohol cue-exposure paradigm as a screening tool for alcohol use disorder medication development: A critical review.

Dylan E Kirsch, Erica N Grodin, Lorenzo Leggio, Sherry A McKee, Lindsay R Meredith, Ethan H Mereish, Robert Miranda, Steven J Nieto, Stephanie S O'Malley, Joseph P Schacht and 1 more

Abstract readReview
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Review in Alcohol, clinical & experimental research, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors.

Dylan E KirschDepartment of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9935-9635
Erica N GrodinDepartment of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5528-4918
Lorenzo LeggioClinical Psychoneuroendocrinology and Neuropsychopharmacology Section, Translational Addiction Medicine Branch, National Institute on Drug Abuse Intramural Research Program and National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism Division of Intramural Clinical and Biological Research, National Institutes of Health, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7284-8754
Sherry A McKeeDepartment of Psychiatry, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8185-9201
Lindsay R MeredithDepartment of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7584-9488
Ethan H MereishDepartment of Psychology, University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland, USA.
Robert MirandaDepartment of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6418-6148
Steven J NietoDepartment of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1158-5211
Stephanie S O'MalleyDepartment of Psychiatry, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1976-2369
Joseph P SchachtDepartment of Psychiatry, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, Colorado, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4250-0495
Lara A RayDepartment of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5734-9444

Funding

Mentored Patient-Oriented Research on Adolescent Alcohol Misuse and TreatmentK24AA026326 · NIAAA · BROWN UNIVERSITY · PI ROBERT MIRANDA · 2018 to 2026
$1.7M
Clinical Neuroscience of Alcoholism: Integrating Neuroscience and Clinical TrialsK24AA025704 · NIAAA · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES · PI LARA A. RAY · 2018 to 2026
$1.3M
Characterizing the Microbiome-Gut-Brain Axis in Individuals with Alcohol Use DisorderK01AA029712 · NIAAA · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LOS ANGELES · PI Erica N Grodin · 2022 to 2026
$819k
NIAAA NIH HHS K01 AA029712NIAAA NIH HHS K24 AA025704NIAAA NIH HHS K24AA025704NIAAA NIH HHS K24 AA026326NIAAA NIH HHS K24AA026326
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The alcohol cue-exposure paradigm has a long and rich history in alcohol use disorder (AUD) research, contributing to the identification of risk factors, the recognition of craving as a core symptom, the understanding of AUD neurobiology, and the development of both pharmacological and behavioral treatments. The goal of this review was to evaluate the utility of the alcohol cue-exposure paradigm as a screening tool for AUD medication development and to provide recommendations for refinement of the paradigm. First, we review evidence supporting the predictive validity and clinical applicability of the alcohol cue-exposure paradigm. Second, we examine current practices in implementing the paradigm in AUD pharmacotherapy studies. Third, we highlight several areas for refinement and offer recommendations for the implementation of this paradigm. Finally, we outline key conclusions and actionable future directions. In summary, while the alcohol cue-exposure paradigm has an established foundation in the study of AUD pharmacotherapies, its future success hinges on a concerted effort to refine and standardize protocols and validate outcome measures in large-scale studies. Addressing these priorities could accelerate the development and regulatory approval of novel treatments for AUD.

Indexed as

AlcoholismCuesDrug DevelopmentCravingHumansaddictionalcohol use disordercravingcue reactivitymedications

Identifiers

PMID41017297
PMCPMC12638288

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.