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| Illicit Drug Use and Abuse May be Genetic |
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Posted by CN Staff on July 05, 2006 at 13:10:37 PT Press Release Source: Newswise 
Newswise -- Researchers have found that genetic factors may play an important role in a person’s use, misuse or dependence of illicit drugs like marijuana, stimulants, opiates, cocaine and psychedelics. In the July issue of the journal Psychological Medicine, Virginia Commonwealth University researchers, in collaboration with researchers from Norwegian Institute of Public Health and University of Oslo in Norway, reported the results of a population-based study of twin pairs that showed that genetic factors influence the illicit drug use in Norway, a country with significantly low levels of psychoactive substance use disorder. “Prior twin studies of illicit drug use and abuse have all been conducted in Anglophonic countries, specifically the United States and Australia, with high levels of such use. This is the first study of a non-English speaking country with much lower rates of drug use - yet results are similar - drug use and abuse or dependence is quite heritable,” said lead author Kenneth S. Kendler, M.D., a professor of psychiatry and human genetics in VCU’s School of Medicine. The team examined the role of genetic and environmental factors in the progression of psychoactive substance use and abuse. Approximately 1,400 young adult twin pairs from the Norwegian Institute of Public Health Twin Panel were interviewed and assessed for their lifetime use of illicit drugs, including marijuana, stimulants, opiates, cocaine and psychedelics. Researchers defined the significant lifetime use of illicit substances as use 10 or more times. Previous theories have suggested that genetic factors might be of less importance in influencing drug use in societies where drugs were not widely available. According to Kendler, the results of this study are inconsistent with this theory. “In addition to prior findings, the results of this investigation indicate that genetic factors are likely to be important risk factors for psychoactive drug use and misuse in many parts of the world,” he said. This work was supported in part by grants from the National Institutes of Health, the Norwegian Research Council, the Norwegian Foundation for Health and Rehabilitation, The Norwegian Council for Mental Health and the European Commission. Kendler collaborated with Steven H. Aggen, Ph.D., in the department of psychiatry at VCU; and Kristian Tambs, Ph.D., and Ted Reichborn-Kjennerud, M.D., who are affiliated with the Division of Mental Health and Institute of Psychiatry, Norwegian Institute of Public Health; and University of Oslo Norway. About VCU and the VCU Medical Center: Located on two downtown campuses in Richmond, Va., Virginia Commonwealth University is ranked nationally by the Carnegie Foundation as a top research institution and enrolls more than 29,000 students in more than 181 certificate, undergraduate, graduate, professional and doctoral programs in the arts, sciences and humanities in 15 schools and one college. Forty of the university’s programs are unique in Virginia, and 20 graduate and professional programs have been ranked by U.S. News & World Report as among the best of their kind. MCV Hospitals, clinics and the health sciences schools of Virginia Commonwealth University compose the VCU Medical Center, one of the leading academic medical centers in the country. For more, see: http://www.vcu.edu Source: Newswise (VA) CannabisNews Justice Archives Home Comment Email Register Recent Comments Help |
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| Comment #5 posted by whig on July 05, 2006 at 15:52:44 PT |
"I called drug use a moral issue. I don't know what to call it. I believe that as long as a person doesn't hurt anyone but maybe himself it shouldn't be a crime. People can jump out of airplanes or climb mountains and they are dangerous but it's ok to do." Actually, jumping out of airplanes is a trip for the person who does that, he or she gets a rush of adrenaline and other endogenous subtances that cause him or her to become very high, and addicted to that kind of thing. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #4 posted by FoM on July 05, 2006 at 15:19:31 PT |
| I saw this miniseries years ago and it was very good. The second two hours will be on tonight on DirecTV. It will be on channel 261 on DirecTV at 12PM. I thought I'd mention it. *** The '60S Director: Mark Piznarski Year film was made: 1999 Genre: Drama Stars: Julia Stiles, Jerry O'Connell, Charles S. Dutton, Jordana Brewster and Josh Hamilton Hippies, the Vietnam War, the Blank Panthers, the Kennedys and more. It's going to be a dramatic flashback that you won't want to miss. The plot focuses on a white family and an African-American family during the turbulent '60s. This powerful story, inspired by actual events, features Charles S. Dutton, Jerry O'Connell, Julia Stiles and many other stars. http://www.lifetimetv.com/movies/info/move0568.html [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #3 posted by FoM on July 05, 2006 at 14:00:32 PT |
| I called drug use a moral issue. I don't know what to call it. I believe that as long as a person doesn't hurt anyone but maybe himself it shouldn't be a crime. People can jump out of airplanes or climb mountains and they are dangerous but it's ok to do. [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #2 posted by Hope on July 05, 2006 at 13:48:18 PT |
| in idiotic circles...pointing to this...pointing to that and never saying or doing anything that amounts to a hill of beans. They are trying to slow the invevitable is all they are doing. Legalize it, already! [ Post Comment ] |
| Comment #1 posted by FoM on July 05, 2006 at 13:20:51 PT |
| I believe that drug abuse can be genetic. I have seen family members get addicted to alcohol even when neither parent drank alcohol. The grandmother and her brothers and sisters had a history of alcoholism. If it isn't a moral issue and people are locked up in jail for something that might be genetic how does that help? That's like being jailed for a genetic flaw. [ Post Comment ] |
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