OBJECTIVES: Three recent studies revealed a haplotypic association of alcohol dependence with the gene encoding the alpha2 subunit of the gamma-aminobutyric acid type A (GABAA) receptor (GABRA2). The present study examined whether variation of the GABRA2 gene confers susceptibility to different subtypes of alcohol dependence in the German population. METHODS: A total of 257 German alcohol-dependent patients and 88 healthy population controls were genotyped for six single-nucleotide polymorphisms covering the middle part and the 3' end of GABRA2. Allelic, genotypic and haplotypic comparisons were done for subgroups of alcohol-dependent patients with a presumed high genetic load. RESULTS: The overall alcohol-dependent patients vs. control group comparison confirmed positive allelic association for five of six single-nucleotide polymorphisms mapping from intron 3 to the 3' end of GABRA2 (P=0.01-0.02). Haplotype analysis revealed two common haplotypes accounting for approximately 90% of the chromosomes within the patients and controls. The less frequent haplotype was significantly more prevalent among the alcohol-dependent patients (45%) than among the controls [29%; odds ratio (OR)=1.97, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.30-2.96]. The strength of association increased, if the subsets of alcohol-dependent patients with a positive family history (OR=2.60, 95% CI: 1.63-4.13), withdrawal seizures (OR=2.22, 95% CI: 1.30-3.79) or an early onset (OR=2.19, 95% CI: 1.24-3.88) were analyzed. CONCLUSIONS: Although our study was limited by the number of cases being larger than the number of controls, the results confirm GABRA2 as a susceptibility gene for alcohol dependence in the German population. We found a consistent increase of the susceptibility effect in alcohol-dependent patients with a presumed strong genetic predisposition.
OBJECTIVES: Three recent studies revealed a haplotypic association of alcohol dependence with the gene encoding the alpha2 subunit of the gamma-aminobutyric acid type A (GABAA) receptor (GABRA2). The present study examined whether variation of the GABRA2 gene confers susceptibility to different subtypes of alcohol dependence in the German population. METHODS: A total of 257 German alcohol-dependent patients and 88 healthy population controls were genotyped for six single-nucleotide polymorphisms covering the middle part and the 3' end of GABRA2. Allelic, genotypic and haplotypic comparisons were done for subgroups of alcohol-dependent patients with a presumed high genetic load. RESULTS: The overall alcohol-dependent patients vs. control group comparison confirmed positive allelic association for five of six single-nucleotide polymorphisms mapping from intron 3 to the 3' end of GABRA2 (P=0.01-0.02). Haplotype analysis revealed two common haplotypes accounting for approximately 90% of the chromosomes within the patients and controls. The less frequent haplotype was significantly more prevalent among the alcohol-dependent patients (45%) than among the controls [29%; odds ratio (OR)=1.97, 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.30-2.96]. The strength of association increased, if the subsets of alcohol-dependent patients with a positive family history (OR=2.60, 95% CI: 1.63-4.13), withdrawal seizures (OR=2.22, 95% CI: 1.30-3.79) or an early onset (OR=2.19, 95% CI: 1.24-3.88) were analyzed. CONCLUSIONS: Although our study was limited by the number of cases being larger than the number of controls, the results confirm GABRA2 as a susceptibility gene for alcohol dependence in the German population. We found a consistent increase of the susceptibility effect in alcohol-dependent patients with a presumed strong genetic predisposition.
Authors: Whitney E Melroy; Sarah H Stephens; Joseph T Sakai; Helen M Kamens; Matthew B McQueen; Robin P Corley; Michael C Stallings; Christian J Hopfer; Kenneth S Krauter; Sandra A Brown; John K Hewitt; Marissa A Ehringer Journal: Behav Genet Date: 2014-04-01 Impact factor: 2.805
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Authors: Jonathan Covault; Joel Gelernter; Kevin Jensen; Raymond Anton; Henry R Kranzler Journal: Neuropsychopharmacology Date: 2007-05-16 Impact factor: 7.853
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Authors: Daniel E Irons; William G Iacono; William S Oetting; Robert M Kirkpatrick; Scott I Vrieze; Michael B Miller; Matt McGue Journal: Alcohol Clin Exp Res Date: 2014-01-24 Impact factor: 3.455