An investigation of associations between alcohol use disorder and polymorphisms on ALDH2, BDNF, 5-HTTLPR, and MTHFR genes in older Korean men

✍ Scribed by Sangmoon Shin; Robert Stewart; Cleusa P Ferri; Jae-Min Kim; Il-Seon Shin; Sung-Wan Kim; Su-Jin Yang; Jin-Sang Yoon

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 2010
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 141 KB
• Volume: 25
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0885-6230
• DOI: 10.1002/gps.2358

✦ Synopsis

Abstract

Background

This study aimed to investigate the association of alcohol use disorder (AUD) with four candidate genes in older Korean men: aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 (ALDH2, 1/2), brain‐derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF, val66met), serotonin transporter gene linked polymorphic region (5‐HTTLPR, s/l), and methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR, c.677C > T).

Methods

A community sample of 300 men aged 65 or over were categorized into 68 subjects with AUD and 232 controls according to clinical examinations and DSM‐IV criteria. Genotype distributions and allele frequencies were compared.

Results

Men with AUD had significantly higher ALDH2*1 and BDNF met allele frequencies compared to controls (p‐values < 0.05). No significant differences in genotype or allele frequencies were found for 5‐HTTLPR or MTHFR (p‐values > 0.3).

Conclusions

AUD was associated with ALDH2*1 and BDNF met alleles in older Korean men. The first is consistent with previous research and likely to be explained by a protective effect of unpleasant symptoms following alcohol consumption associated with ALDH__2*2__. The second finding is novel and might be accounted for by BDNF‐mediated serotonin or dopamine pathways. However, given the relatively small sample size, the results should be regarded as preliminary and requiring independent replication. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.