Palm Trees

Gene Variations Increase Caucasians' Risk of Heroin Addiction

To better understand why some people become addicted to certain substances and others don’t, scientists continue to study the genetic makeup of different individuals. Such research has led to the identification of gene variations that indicate that specific nationalities may be more susceptible. Science Daily examined research from Rockefeller University that identified several genetic variations in American and Israeli Caucasians that influence the risk for addiction to heroin.

Mary Jeanne Kreek, head of the Laboratory of the Biology of Addictive Diseases, worked with other researchers to analyze 1, 350 variations in 130 genes and found nine, from six genes, that were either more or less common in recovering heroin addicts when compared with Caucasians who had no history of drug abuse. These small changes in the gene sequences can cause significant changes in protein function that can influence addictive behavior. These changes may affect people of different ethnicities differently.

“The idea of ‘personalized medicine’ makes this field really exciting but also very complicated,” said Orna Levran, a senior research associate in the Kreek laboratory and first author of the study. “Although seven of these variants increase the risk for developing heroin addiction in Caucasians, the same seven may not have the same effect in other populations. So ethnicity and, more precisely, genetic information in each individual may become important factors for treating and diagnosing addictions to different drugs.”

This research and analysis also provided proof that opiate receptors play a major role in severe heroin addiction. As a result, some people will be more susceptible to heroin addictions while others may have an inherent protection.

Of course, other variables enter into an individual’s likelihood to develop an addiction to heroin, but this study has important implications. By understanding which elements within a specific individual may or may not contribute to an increased chance of addiction, treatments can be developed that more closely match the elements of that person’s addiction.