The University of Tennessee Health Science Center · Pharmacology

Social Behavior and Alcohol Research Lab

Brendan Tunstall · Memphis, Tennessee

Research Focus

The lab focuses on understanding how social interactions affect alcohol consumption and dependence, particularly through the lens of the social neuropeptide oxytocin. By developing a preclinical model, the research aims to dissect the neurobiological mechanisms underlying alcohol-seeking behaviors in diverse social contexts. This work is especially relevant to addressing Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD), which significantly impacts public health.

Alcohol Use Disorderneurobiologysocial behavioroxytocinalcohol self-administrationpreclinical modelbrain circuitrysex differencesdrug dependenceneurohistochemistry

Research Aims

AIM 01Examine the interaction between social context and alcohol self-administration behavior.

AIM 02Investigate how alcohol dependence alters the reinforcement properties of alcohol in social contexts.

AIM 03Determine differences in alcohol self-administration behaviors between male and female rats.

AIM 04Identify the brain regions active during alcohol-seeking behavior in social versus non-social contexts.

AIM 05Evaluate the role of the oxytocin neurocircuitry in modulating alcohol consumption.

Skills the Lab Values

ImmunohistochemistryIn Situ HybridizationGene expression analysisOptogeneticsBehavioral experimentsAnimal modelsCRISPR/Cas technologyNeuroanatomical mappingData analysisSocial interaction assessment

Output against the department

Publications55bottom 8% of dept.422nd of 462

this lab

most publishedleast published

Citations1.4kbottom 8% of dept.423rd of 462

this lab

most citedleast cited

Career totals from OpenAlex, compared against labs that share a department. A department spans everything from one paper to tens of thousands, so bar heights are on a log scale — otherwise the largest lab would flatten every other bar to a line.