The Genetic Approach to Alcoholism The Genetic Approach to Alcoholism

A common human disease, alcoholism may result from a variety of causes. A few of the contributing factors include cultural influences, environmental effects, and heredity. Recent scientific advances in molecular genetics, have focused particular attention on those aspects of the disease which are inherited. Certain researchers claim to have even identified a gene for susceptibility to alcoholism. These assertions have engendered considerable controversy. All sides do agree though, on the fact that the problem is exceedingly complex.

Alcoholism is a devastating condition afflicting a substantial segment of the population. It is perhaps one of the most common of the human diseases (3:145). Lifetime risk estimates range from between 3% and 5% among males and between 0.1% and 1% in females.

In addition, the etiology of alcoholism very complex. Cultural influences may involve such things as ethnic, religious, or gender attitudes toward alcohol use. Environmental issues can concern alcohol availability or peer pressure. Superimposed upon all of these different elements is a person's genetic make-up: various inherited characteristics are thought to result in vulnerability to alcoholism. Furthermore, this wide array of contributing factors can vary throughout a given family, across a span of time, and in different populations (6:243-244).

Thus, the etiologic influences with regard to alcohol use and-abuse constitute a complex syste

. . .
al nervous system, dopamine activates the mesolimbic/mesocortical dopaminergic circuits, thus resulting in feelings of pleasure and euphoria. These sensations are thought to be directly responsible for the reward and reinforcement behaviors associated with many drug-induced addictive disorders (11:229). Such observations have focused researcher's attention on the dopamine receptor genes. It was hypothesized that perhaps individual differences in the function of the dopamine receptors might influence a person's vulnerability to alcoholism (2:59). These differences would be determined by the person's specific genome, and susceptibility to alcohol could accordingly be governed by a possible "alcoholism gene." Eventually these hypotheses led to the D(2) dopamine receptor (DRD2) gene. DRD2 is located on human chromosome llq32. It extends over 270-kb and includes an intron of approximately 250-kb separating the first exon from the exons which encode for the receptor protein. The map of DRD2 spans over 1.2 mb of chromosome. In addition to susceptibility to alcoholism, the gene has also been circumstantially associated with a number of other disorders including Parkinson's disease and schizophrenia (4:1010-1016). The first inves
. . .

Some common words found in the essay are:
Lastly Merikangas, Proponents DRD2, Approach Alcoholism, Cheyenne Indians, DRD2 MRNA, Al A2, Greek Chinese, Al Bl, Washington University, Supporters DRD2, al allele, dopamine receptor, et al, drd2 gene, d2 dopamine, d2 dopamine receptor, noble et al, developments alcoholism, severe alcoholics, substance abuse, gene alcoholism, receptor gene, recent developments alcoholism, dopamine receptor gene, et al 1993,
Approximate Word count = 3330
Approximate Pages = 13 (250 words per page)

More Essays on The Genetic Approach to Alcoholism The Genetic Approach to Alcoholism