Association of ADH1B rs1229984, ADH1C rs698, and ALDH2 rs671 with Alcohol abuse and Alcoholic Cirrhosis in People Living in Northeast Vietnam

OBJECTIVE

Alcohol abuse can cause developing cirrhosis, even liver cancer. Several single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of ADH1B, ADH1C, and ALDH2 genes have been reported to be associated with alcohol abuse and alcoholic cirrhosis (ALC). This study investigated the association between three SNPs of ADH1B rs1229984, ADH1C rs698, and ALDH2 rs671 with alcohol abuse and ALC in people living in the Northeast region of Vietnam.

METHODS

306 male participants were recruited including 206 alcoholics (106 ALC, 100 without ALC) and 100 healthy non-alcoholics. Clinical characteristics were collected by clinicians. Genotypes were identified by Sanger sequencing. Chi-Square (χ2) and Fisher-exact tests were used to assess the differences in age and clinical characteristics, Child-Pugh score, frequencies of alleles and genotypes.

RESULT

Our data showed that the frequency of ALDH2*1 was significantly higher in alcoholics (88.59%) and ALC groups (93.40%) than that of healthy non-alcoholics (78.50%) with p=0.0009 and non-ALC group (83.50%) with p=0.002, respectively. We detected opposite results when examined ALDH2*2. Frequency of combined genotypes with high acetaldehyde accumulation were significantly lower in alcoholics and ALC group than those of control groups with p=0.005 and p=0.008, respectively. Meanwhile, the proportion of combined genotypes with non-acetaldehyde accumulation were significantly two times higher in the ALC group (19.98%) than those of the non-ALC group (8%) with p=0.035. These combined genotypes showed a decreasing trend in the Child-Pugh score from likely phenotype causing risk for non-acetaldehyde accumulation to high acetaldehyde accumulation.

CONCLUSION

The ALDH2*1 allele was found as a risk factor for alcohol abuse and ALC, and combined genotypes of ADH1B rs1229984, ADH1C rs698, and ALDH2 rs671 with non-acetaldehyde accumulation increase ALC risk. In contrast, ALDH2*2 and the genotype combinations related to high acetaldehyde accumulation were protective factors against alcohol abuse and ALC.

Racial/ethnic discrimination, ADH1B*3, and coping-motivated drinking among Black college students

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES

Discrimination due to race and/or ethnicity can be a pervasive stressor for Black college students in the United States beyond general negative life events and has demonstrated associations with adverse health and alcohol outcomes. Genetics may confer individual differences in the risk of drinking to cope with discrimination-related stress. This study tested whether associations of racial/ethnic discrimination with coping drinking motives and alcohol use differ as a function of a well-documented variant in the alcohol dehydrogenase 1B gene (ADH1B*3).

METHODS

Cross-sectional data were obtained from 241 Black students (Mage  = 20.04 [range = 18-53]; 66% female) attending a predominantly White university in the northeastern United States. Participants provided a saliva sample for genotyping and self-reported on their racial/ethnic discrimination experiences, coping drinking motives, and past-month total alcohol quantity.

RESULTS

Path models demonstrated that associations of discrimination with alcohol quantity directly or indirectly through coping drinking motives did not differ as a function of ADH1B*3, after controlling for gender, age, negative life events, and potential confounding interactions of covariates with model predictors. Regardless of ADH1B*3, greater experience of negative life events was associated with higher coping drinking motives, which in turn were associated with greater alcohol quantity. CONCLUSION AND SCIENTIFIC SIGNIFICANCE: Findings represent a novel investigation into gene-environment interplay in associations of alcohol use with racial/ethnic discrimination. Findings demonstrate coping-motivated drinking associated with negative life events within Black college drinkers regardless of ADH1B*3. Future research should leverage longitudinal designs to characterize associations of genetics, stressful experiences, and coping-motivated drinking over time.