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Wednesday, May 16, 2007

The opioid system in alcohol and drug dependence: Family-based association study
American Journal of Medical Genetics Part B: Neuropsychiatric Genetics
Early View Published Online: 14 May 2007



Opioid receptors and their endogenous peptide ligands play important roles in neurotransmission and neuromodulation in response to addictive drugs such as heroin, cocaine, and alcohol.

In an earlier study, we reported that variation in the genes encoding the -opioid receptor (OPRK1) and its peptide ligand (PDYN) were associated with the risk for alcoholism. We continued our investigation of the role of the opioid system in alcohol dependence by analyzing the genes encoding the ยต- and -opioid receptors and their peptide ligands.

Our data provide no support for the idea that variations in OPRM1, OPRD1, PENK and POMC are associated with alcohol dependence or general illicit drug dependence, but variations in PENK and POMC appear to be associated with the narrower phenotype of opioid dependence in these families.

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Reprint Request E-mail: xxuei@iupui.edu
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