Clairmont Griffith and Bernice La France
Disorders related to the addiction to drugs and substances are regarded as one of the major causes of deaths that, however, can be prevented by Slutske et al. But various genetic and environmental factors may greatly aggravate such a dependency, especially if take into consideration that most of them can be inherited. ??Ls fact was confirmed by the findings of the studies conducted on twins i.e., twin studies, according to which the addiction may occur due to the existence of genetic etiology. While examining the dangers of drug and substance abuse, it is crucial to comprehend the biological occurrences that cause addiction and establish drugs that can disrupt with cellular mechanisms to prevent and cure the dependence. That is, the understanding of the factors that influence nicotine dependence is critical in lowering the rate of smoking.
This study is aimed at grouping and identifying addictions, evaluating the function of heritable differences of addictions and the intersection of hereditary impacts of alcohol and substance abuse. The study has employed various approaches interviews and phenotyping techniques involving neuroimaging and endophenotypes results.
This study was based on face-to-face interviews findings as well as interviews conducted via phone to minimize movements to both the interviewer and the interviewee. The subjects involved included individuals addicted to drugs and substance, health and social workers dealing with the addicted people, and the relatives of the addicted individuals. The interview involved the vast number of participants including around two thousand smokers, three thousand alcohol addicts, and three thousand cannabis addicts. One hundred and fi??????y-sLx health workers concerned with the welfare of the addiction victims were involved in the study as well. One hundred and thirty-four social workers participated. Four thousand relatives of the addicted victims were interviewed, and laboratory-based assessments were also conducted.
According to their results, polymorphism in ADH1B has insignificant effect on alcohol consumption. Similarly, polymorphism in ALDH2 has no association with alcohol consumption. Contrary to Crous-Bou et al.’s finding, the serotonergic variants have also been included in the etiology of alcohol addiction. Nevertheless, a meta-examination of conventional researched serotonin transporter gene polymorphism discovered a feeble connection with alcohol dependence (p<0.05). In addition to these finding, inconsistent relationships between diverse forms of cannabinoid receptor 1 hereditary factor were also reported.
The reports showed that there are adjustments of the central nervous system in the reward cycles associated with impulsivity, addiction, and molecular processes of the activity of hereditary factors variants in these channels attributed to a drug addiction. The addicted subjects showed less awareness concerning the biological bases of dependence. Expectedly, addiction is examined through self-narration interviews, questionnaires, and clinical interrogations. Nevertheless, experiments in the laboratory were also applied to offer the analysis of individual variations in addiction using challenge conceptual frameworks in which extreme amounts of a drug are given to the subjects in a controlled environment. By using this concept, the study designed the stage of feedback phenotype for oral alcohol tests whose results were both positive and negative including nausea and different physiological and biomarker adjustments that were applied to recognize a reduced level of response of people who are exposed to high threats of alcoholism.
In conclusion, addictions are critical conditions associated with disorders that may be repercussions or prospective causes of dependence. It is profoundly influenced by genetic and environmental factors. Majority of the alcohol dependents have at least 1 S allele that increases their risk to addiction. Similarly, serotonin transporter polymorphism also influenced alcohol dependence. Use of alcohol was however promoted by diverse environmental factors.
Likewise, there is a strong association between nicotine dependence and genetics. The use of this drug is heritable as it is evident in majority of the users’ genetic polymorphisms. Despite this, gene variants in brain dopamine demonstrate the effectiveness of pharmacotherapies in enhancing smoking cessation. The way we evaluated dependence is substantially associated with the impact of hereditary factors and genetic routes that are diagnosed. Use of several inter-linked strategies for the assessment of addiction in relation to genetic factors and determining their correlations with each other provides pathways for associating hereditary factors and habits.
Keywords: Addiction; Dependence; Environmental factors; Etiology; Hereditary; Markers