Irene Pericot-Valverde, assistant professor in the Clemson University Department of Psychology, received a career development (K01) award of more than $870,000 from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) — a division in the National Institutes of Health (NIH) — to investigate whether electronic cigarettes (EC) serve as a harm reduction strategy for combustible cigarette (CC) use among individuals with opioid use disorder (OUD).
NIDA K awards are granted to early career researchers to provide mentored research support, enhance skills development and offer protected time for research and training activities over a five-year period.
“It is a highlight of my career to earn a NIDA K award,” said Pericot-Valverde. “This recognition affirms the value of my research and inspires me to continue to pursue opportunities for innovation, growth and meaningful contributions to our field.”
Pericot-Valverde will receive mentorship from six advisors in the fields of addiction medicine, public health, experimental and clinical psychology and biostatistics. Alain Litwin, M.D., vice chair of academics and research and chief scientific officer at Prisma Health-Upstate and professor of practice in the Department of Psychology, and Moonseong Heo, Ph.D., professor in the Department of Public Health Sciences, will serve as her Clemson-affiliated mentors. She will also be supported by nationally recognized experts, including Shadi Nahvi, M.D.; Abby Batchelder, Ph.D.; James Thrasher, Ph.D.; and Diann Gaalema, Ph.D.
The grant will provide protected time and resources for Pericot-Valverde to develop her skills as an independent clinical research scientist and leader in developing evidence-based harm reduction interventions to decrease cigarette smoking among people with OUD.
According to Pericot-Valverde, evidence suggests that EC are a promising harm reduction strategy for decreasing the number of cigarettes smoked per day (CPD) among smokers who are unable to quit with evidence-based interventions. Prior studies have also shown that EC flavors and frequency of EC use are important factors promoting CPD reduction among adult smokers without OUD. However, to her knowledge, no study has systematically tested the influence of EC flavors and patterns of EC use on CPD reduction and other harm reduction milestones among smokers with OUD.
The funded study will use a randomized clinical trial design to test the effect of EC flavors on CPD, switching away from cigarettes and other harm reduction milestones; characterize patterns of EC use associated with these harm reduction milestones; and identify barriers to implementing and maintaining EC protocols in real-world settings that provide care to people with OUD.
“Dr. Pericot-Valverde is an exceptional scholar and colleague, and this award is a testament to her early career contributions to our field,” said Pat Raymark, chair of the Department of Psychology. “I look forward to her continued success and innovative research that will benefit individuals and communities across South Carolina and beyond.”
Pericot-Valverde credits the project’s early success to her Clemson Faculty Succeeds (CU Succeeds) funding, participation in the Clemson University and Prisma Health NIH Accelerator Program, and the University’s Creative Inquiry program. CU Succeeds and the NIH Accelerator Program provided support mechanisms that enabled her to write a competitive grant and to carry out a successful clinical trial, while undergraduate students in her Creative Inquiry class assisted with data collection for the pilot study. Together, these three Clemson University programs laid the foundation for her successful NIDA K award proposal.
To date, Clemson University has received two early career development awards from the National Institutes of Health and both recipients are faculty members in the College of Behavioral, Social and Health Sciences (CBSHS) – Pericot-Valverde and Zahra Rahemi, associate professor in the School of Nursing.
“Early career awards speak to the strength and promise of a faculty member’s research and contributions to their field,” said Bryan Miller, associate dean for research in CBSHS. “Having both Clemson University NIH award recipients in CBSHS underscores the quality of our faculty members’ research and scholarship and the overall commitment to excellence in our College.”
Additionally, Pericot-Valverde recently received recognition from the premier professional organization in the field of psychology and was elected as a Fellow of the American Psychological Association (APA) for her outstanding contributions, diligent work and dedication to the field.
The Department of Psychology is a part of the College of Behavioral, Social and Health Sciences. Established in July 2016, CBSHS is a 21st-century, land-grant college that combines work in nine disciplines – communication; nursing; parks, recreation and tourism management; political science; psychology; public health sciences; sociology, anthropology and criminal justice – to further its mission of “building people and communities” in South Carolina and beyond.
