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Full-Text Articles in Medicine and Health Sciences
From Linkage To Gwas: A Multifaceted Exploration Of The Genetic Risk For Alcohol Dependence, Amy Adkins
From Linkage To Gwas: A Multifaceted Exploration Of The Genetic Risk For Alcohol Dependence, Amy Adkins
Theses and Dissertations
Family, twin and adoption studies consistently suggest that genetic factors strongly influence the risk for alcohol dependence (AD). Although the literature supports the role of genetics in AD, identification of specific genes contributing to the etiology of AD has proven difficult. These difficulties are due in part to the complex set of risk factors contributing to the development of AD. These risk factors include comorbidities with other clinical diagnoses and behavioral phenotypes (e.g., major depression), physiological differences that contribute to the differences between people in their level of response to ethanol (e.g., initial sensitivity) and finally the large number of …
Examining Alcohol Dependence And Its Correlates From A Genetically Informative Perspective, Laura Hack
Examining Alcohol Dependence And Its Correlates From A Genetically Informative Perspective, Laura Hack
Theses and Dissertations
Alcohol dependence (AD) is a serious and common public health problem that contributes to great societal, medical, and legal costs. It has taken work from multiple disciplines, including developmental psychology, genetic epidemiology, and molecular genetics, to achieve our current understanding of environmental and genetic risk factors for AD as well as its variable developmental trajectories. Nevertheless, there is still much to be learned in order to improve treatment outcomes. One approach to augmenting our understanding of this disorder is through genetically informative study designs that either examine risk in aggregate or assess specific susceptibility variants. In this dissertation, we utilize …
Using Genetic Information In Risk Prediction For Alcohol Dependence, Jia Yan
Using Genetic Information In Risk Prediction For Alcohol Dependence, Jia Yan
Theses and Dissertations
Family-based and genome-wide association studies (GWAS) of alcohol dependence (AD) have reported numerous associated variants. The clinical validity of these variants for predicting AD compared to family history has not yet been reported. These studies aim to explore the aggregate impact of multiple genetic variants with small effect sizes on risk prediction in order to provide a clinical interpretation of genetic contributions to AD. Data simulations showed that given AD’s prevalence and heritability, a risk prediction model incorporating all genetic contributions would have an area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) approaching 0.80, which is often a target AUC …
Elucidating Genetic And Environmental Influences On Alcohol-Related Phenotypes, Jacquelyn Meyers
Elucidating Genetic And Environmental Influences On Alcohol-Related Phenotypes, Jacquelyn Meyers
Theses and Dissertations
Decades of work has led researchers to believe that risk for complex behavioral phenotypes, such as alcohol use disorders, is likely influenced by multiple genes of small effect acting in conjunction with each other and the environment. Currently, the field of psychiatric genetics is developing methodologies for the identification of genetic risk variants that predispose individuals to the development of complex behavioral disorders. Several challenges related to the complex and polygenic nature of these phenotypes, must be considered. This dissertation study attempts to address these important challenges in the context of alcohol use disorders and related phenotypes. A rich twin …
Association Tests Of The Opioid Receptor System And Alcohol-Related Traits, Ryan Bennett
Association Tests Of The Opioid Receptor System And Alcohol-Related Traits, Ryan Bennett
Theses and Dissertations
The opioid receptors and their endogenous ligands have long been implicated in a variety of traits including addiction, impulsive behaviors and substance dependence. Using phenotypic measurements collected from the IASPSAD, data from a latent class analysis and data from a SNP array and additional genotyping assays, association and regression tests were performed to determine the effects of common SNPs encoded in the genes of the opioid receptors and ligands on various traits relating to alcohol dependence. Although only one SNP can be reported as significant for substance dependence within alcoholics, there were a few results approaching significance that may offer …