Research Society on Alcoholism Selects SRI's Adolf Pfefferbaum for its 2011 Distinguished Researcher Award

MENLO PARK, Calif., July 25, 2011 /PRNewswire/ --In recognition of achieving "an unparalleled level of success in alcoholism research" that has advanced scientific knowledge, the Research Society on Alcoholism (RSA) has awarded its 2011 Distinguished Researcher Award to Adolf Pfefferbaum, M.D., director of the Neuroscience Program in the Center for Health Sciences at SRI International and a professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University School of Medicine.

The award was awarded jointly to Dr. Pfefferbaum and his long-time collaborator, Edith V. Sullivan, Ph.D., also a professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Stanford University School of Medicine.

The awards committee noted that the honorees' neuroimaging studies have enabled testing alcohol-based brain changes and led to a better understanding of alcohol-induced brain damage. The researchers were selected for the award because their collaborative efforts have contributed new knowledge about how the human brain responds and adapts to the chronic toxicity of excessive alcohol consumption.

In the United States, 17.6 million people--about 1 in every 12 adults--abuse alcohol or are alcohol dependent.

In 2008, Dr. Pfefferbaum received RSA's Excellence in Research Award, given to an individual researcher demonstrating innovation, creativity, and excellence in their research whose work has a major impact on the field.

He is also a Method to Extend Research in Time (MERIT) award recipient from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) for his work on the interaction between aging and alcoholism. MERIT awards are offered to a small number of investigators who have demonstrated superior competence and outstanding productivity during their previous research endeavors and who are likely to continue to perform in an outstanding manner in the future.

Dr. Pfefferbaum has more than 300 publications in peer-reviewed journals and more than 200 publications in alcoholism research studies.

The RSA award was presented at the closing ceremony of the 2011 RSA Scientific Conference, held on June 27 in Atlanta, Georgia.

About SRI International

Silicon Valley-based SRI International, a nonprofit research and development organization, performs sponsored R&D for governments, businesses, and foundations. SRI brings its innovations to the marketplace through technology licensing, new products, and spin-off ventures. Commemorating its 65th anniversary in 2011, SRI is known for world-changing innovations in computing, health and pharmaceuticals, chemistry and materials, sensing, energy, education, national defense, and more.

SOURCE SRI International