Browsing by Author "Dick, Danielle M."

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    An ADH1B variant and peer drinking in progression to adolescent drinking milestones: Evidence of a gene-by-environment interaction
    (Wiley Online Library, 2014-10) Olfson, Emily; Edenberg, Howard J.; Nurnberger Jr., John; Agrawal, Arpana; Bucholz, Kathleen K.; Almasy, Laura A.; Chorlian, David; Dick, Danielle M.; Hesselbrock, Victor M.; Kramer, John R.; Kuperman, Samuel; Porjesz, Bernice; Schuckit, Marc A.; Tischfield, Jay A.; Wang, Jen-Chyong; Wetherill, Leah; Foroud, Tatiana M.; Rice, John; Goate, Alison; Bierut, Laura J.; Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, IU School of Medicine
    BACKGROUND: Adolescent drinking is an important public health concern, one that is influenced by both genetic and environmental factors. The functional variant rs1229984 in alcohol dehydrogenase 1B (ADH1B) has been associated at a genome-wide level with alcohol use disorders in diverse adult populations. However, few data are available regarding whether this variant influences early drinking behaviors and whether social context moderates this effect. This study examines the interplay between rs1229984 and peer drinking in the development of adolescent drinking milestones. METHODS: One thousand five hundred and fifty European and African American individuals who had a full drink of alcohol before age 18 were selected from a longitudinal study of youth as part of the Collaborative Study on the Genetics of Alcoholism (COGA). Cox proportional hazards regression, with G × E product terms in the final models, was used to study 2 primary outcomes during adolescence: age of first intoxication and age of first DSM-5 alcohol use disorder symptom. RESULTS: The minor A allele of rs1229984 was associated with a protective effect for first intoxication (HR = 0.56, 95% CI 0.41 to 0.76) and first DSM-5 symptom (HR = 0.45, 95% CI 0.26 to 0.77) in the final models. Reporting that most or all best friends drink was associated with a hazardous effect for first intoxication (HR = 1.81, 95% CI 1.62 to 2.01) and first DSM-5 symptom (HR = 2.17, 95% 1.88 to 2.50) in the final models. Furthermore, there was a significant G × E interaction for first intoxication (p = 0.002) and first DSM-5 symptom (p = 0.01). Among individuals reporting none or few best friends drinking, the ADH1B variant had a protective effect for adolescent drinking milestones, but for those reporting most or all best friends drinking, this effect was greatly reduced. CONCLUSIONS: Our results suggest that the risk factor of best friends drinking attenuates the protective effect of a well-established ADH1B variant for 2 adolescent drinking behaviors. These findings illustrate the interplay between genetic and environmental factors in the development of drinking milestones during adolescence.
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    Alcohol reverses the effects of KCNJ6 (GIRK2) noncoding variants on excitability of human glutamatergic neurons
    (Springer Nature, 2023) Popova, Dina; Gameiro-Ros, Isabel; Youssef, Mark M.; Zalamea, Petronio; Morris, Ayeshia D.; Prytkova, Iya; Jadali, Azadeh; Kwan, Kelvin Y.; Kamarajan, Chella; Salvatore, Jessica E.; Xuei, Xiaoling; Chorlian, David B.; Porjesz, Bernice; Kuperman, Samuel; Dick, Danielle M.; Goate, Alison; Edenberg, Howard J.; Tischfield, Jay A.; Pang, Zhiping P.; Slesinger, Paul A.; Hart, Ronald P.; Medical and Molecular Genetics, School of Medicine
    Synonymous and noncoding single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the KCNJ6 gene, encoding G protein-gated inwardly rectifying potassium channel subunit 2 (GIRK2), have been linked with increased electroencephalographic frontal theta event-related oscillations (ERO) in subjects diagnosed with alcohol use disorder (AUD). To identify molecular and cellular mechanisms while retaining the appropriate genetic background, we generated induced excitatory glutamatergic neurons (iN) from iPSCs derived from four AUD-diagnosed subjects with KCNJ6 variants ("Affected: AF") and four control subjects without variants ("Unaffected: UN"). Neurons were analyzed for changes in gene expression, morphology, excitability and physiological properties. Single-cell RNA sequencing suggests that KCNJ6 AF variant neurons have altered patterns of synaptic transmission and cell projection morphogenesis. Results confirm that AF neurons express lower levels of GIRK2, have greater neurite area, and elevated excitability. Interestingly, exposure to intoxicating concentrations of ethanol induces GIRK2 expression and reverses functional effects in AF neurons. Ectopic overexpression of GIRK2 alone mimics the effect of ethanol to normalize induced excitability. We conclude that KCNJ6 variants decrease GIRK2 expression and increase excitability and that this effect can be minimized or reduced with ethanol.
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    Alcohol-Related, Drug-Related, and Non-Substance-Related Aggression: Three Facets of a Single Construct or Three Distinct Constructs?
    (Wiley, 2020-09) Chester, David S.; Bucholz, Kathleen K.; Chan, Grace; Kamarajan, Chella; Pandey, Ashwini K.; Wetherill, Leah; Kramer, John R.; Nurnberger, John I., Jr.; Salvatore, Jessica E.; Dick, Danielle M.; Medical and Molecular Genetics, School of Medicine
    Background: Aggression often occurs alongside alcohol and drug misuse. However, it is not clear whether the latent and manifest relations among alcohol-related, drug-related, and non-substance-related aggression are separate manifestations of a single construct or instead are 3 distinct constructs. Methods: To examine these associations, we conducted a preregistered analysis of 13,490 participants in the Collaborative Study on the Genetics of Alcoholism. In a structured interview, participants reported their lifetime perpetration of these 3 aggression phenotypes. Results: The data were better fit by a model that treated these aggression phenotypes as 3 distinct latent factors, as compared to models in which the items all loaded onto 1 ("general") or 2 ("substance-related" and "non-substance-related") aggression factors. This 3-factor model fit better for men than women. Subsequent exploratory analyses then showed that among these 3 factors, alcohol-related aggression explained the variance of overall aggression better than the other 2 factors. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that these 3 forms of aggression are distinct phenotypes (especially among men). Yet, people's alcohol-related aggression can accurately characterize their overall aggressive tendencies across these domains. Future research will benefit from articulating the unique and shared pathways and risk factors underlying each of these facets of aggression.
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    Association of Polygenic Liability for Alcohol Dependence and EEG Connectivity in Adolescence and Young Adulthood
    (MDPI, 2019-10-17) Meyers, Jacquelyn L.; Chorlian, David B.; Johnson, Emma C.; Pandey, Ashwini K.; Kamarajan, Chella; Salvatore, Jessica E.; Aliev, Fazil; Subbie-Saenz de Viteri, Stacey; Zhang, Jian; Chao, Michael; Kapoor, Manav; Hesselbrock, Victor; Kramer, John; Kuperman, Samuel; Nurnberger, John; Tischfield, Jay; Goate, Alison; Foroud, Tatiana; Dick, Danielle M.; Edenberg, Howard J.; Agrawal, Arpana; Porjesz, Bernice; Medical and Molecular Genetics, School of Medicine
    Differences in the connectivity of large-scale functional brain networks among individuals with alcohol use disorders (AUD), as well as those at risk for AUD, point to dysfunctional neural communication and related cognitive impairments. In this study, we examined how polygenic risk scores (PRS), derived from a recent GWAS of DSM-IV Alcohol Dependence (AD) conducted by the Psychiatric Genomics Consortium, relate to longitudinal measures of interhemispheric and intrahemispheric EEG connectivity (alpha, theta, and beta frequencies) in adolescent and young adult offspring from the Collaborative Study on the Genetics of Alcoholism (COGA) assessed between ages 12 and 31. Our findings indicate that AD PRS (p-threshold < 0.001) was associated with increased fronto-central, tempo-parietal, centro-parietal, and parietal-occipital interhemispheric theta and alpha connectivity in males only from ages 18-31 (beta coefficients ranged from 0.02-0.06, p-values ranged from 10-6-10-12), but not in females. Individuals with higher AD PRS also demonstrated more performance deficits on neuropsychological tasks (Tower of London task, visual span test) as well as increased risk for lifetime DSM-5 alcohol and opioid use disorders. We conclude that measures of neural connectivity, together with neurocognitive performance and substance use behavior, can be used to further understanding of how genetic risk variants from large GWAS of AUD may influence brain function. In addition, these data indicate the importance of examining sex and developmental effects, which otherwise may be masked. Understanding of neural mechanisms linking genetic variants emerging from GWAS to risk for AUD throughout development may help to identify specific points when neurocognitive prevention and intervention efforts may be most effective.
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    Associations Between Cannabis Use, Polygenic Liability for Schizophrenia, and Cannabis-related Experiences in a Sample of Cannabis Users
    (Oxford University Press, 2023) Johnson, Emma C.; Colbert, Sarah M. C.; Jeffries, Paul W.; Tillman, Rebecca; Bigdeli, Tim B.; Karcher, Nicole R.; Chan, Grace; Kuperman, Samuel; Meyers, Jacquelyn L.; Nurnberger, John I.; Plawecki, Martin H.; Degenhardt, Louisa; Martin, Nicholas G.; Kamarajan, Chella; Schuckit, Marc A.; Murray, Robin M.; Dick, Danielle M.; Edenberg, Howard J.; D'Souza, Deepak Cyril; Di Forti, Marta; Porjesz, Bernice; Nelson, Elliot C.; Agrawal, Arpana; Medical and Molecular Genetics, School of Medicine
    Background and hypothesis: Risk for cannabis use and schizophrenia is influenced in part by genetic factors, and there is evidence that genetic risk for schizophrenia is associated with subclinical psychotic-like experiences (PLEs). Few studies to date have examined whether genetic risk for schizophrenia is associated with cannabis-related PLEs. Study design: We tested whether measures of cannabis involvement and polygenic risk scores (PRS) for schizophrenia were associated with self-reported cannabis-related experiences in a sample ascertained for alcohol use disorders (AUDs), the Collaborative Study on the Genetics of Alcoholism (COGA). We analyzed 4832 subjects (3128 of European ancestry and 1704 of African ancestry; 42% female; 74% meeting lifetime criteria for an AUD). Study results: Cannabis use disorder (CUD) was prevalent in this analytic sample (70%), with 40% classified as mild, 25% as moderate, and 35% as severe. Polygenic risk for schizophrenia was positively associated with cannabis-related paranoia, feeling depressed or anhedonia, social withdrawal, and cognitive difficulties, even when controlling for duration of daily cannabis use, CUD, and age at first cannabis use. The schizophrenia PRS was most robustly associated with cannabis-related cognitive difficulties (β = 0.22, SE = 0.04, P = 5.2e-7). In an independent replication sample (N = 1446), associations between the schizophrenia PRS and cannabis-related experiences were in the expected direction and not statistically different in magnitude from those in the COGA sample. Conclusions: Among individuals who regularly use cannabis, genetic liability for schizophrenia-even in those without clinical features-may increase the likelihood of reporting unusual experiences related to cannabis use.
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    Associations between Suicidal Thoughts and Behaviors and Genetic Liability for Cognitive Performance, Depression, and Risk-Taking in a High-Risk Sample
    (Karger, 2021) Johnson, Emma C.; Aliev, Fazil; Meyers, Jacquelyn L.; Salvatore, Jessica E.; Tillman, Rebecca; Chang, Yoonhoo; Docherty, Anna R.; Bogdan, Ryan; Acion, Laura; Chan, Grace; Chorlian, David B.; Kamarajan, Chella; Kuperman, Samuel; Pandey, Ashwini; Plawecki, Martin H.; Schuckit, Marc; Tischfield, Jay; Edenberg, Howard J.; Bucholz, Kathleen K.; Nurnberger, John I.; Porjesz, Bernice; Hesselbrock, Victor; Dick, Danielle M.; Kramer, John R.; Agrawal, Arpana; Psychiatry, School of Medicine
    Background: Suicidal thoughts and behaviors (STBs) and nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI) behaviors are moderately heritable and may reflect an underlying predisposition to depression, impulsivity, and cognitive vulnerabilities to varying degrees. Objectives: We aimed to estimate the degrees of association between genetic liability to depression, impulsivity, and cognitive performance and STBs and NSSI in a high-risk sample. Methods: We used data on 7,482 individuals of European ancestry and 3,359 individuals of African ancestry from the Collaborative Study on the Genetics of Alcoholism to examine the links between polygenic scores (PGSs) for depression, impulsivity/risk-taking, and cognitive performance with 3 self-reported indices of STBs (suicidal ideation, persistent suicidal ideation defined as ideation occurring on at least 7 consecutive days, and suicide attempt) and with NSSI. Results: The PGS for depression was significantly associated with all 4 primary self-harm measures, explaining 0.6-2.5% of the variance. The PGS for risk-taking behaviors was also associated with all 4 self-harm behaviors in baseline models, but was no longer associated after controlling for a lifetime measure of DSM-IV alcohol dependence and abuse symptom counts. Polygenic predisposition for cognitive performance was negatively associated with suicide attempts (q = 3.8e-4) but was not significantly associated with suicidal ideation nor NSSI. We did not find any significant associations in the African ancestry subset, likely due to smaller sample sizes. Conclusions: Our results encourage the study of STB as transdiagnostic outcomes that show genetic overlap with a range of risk factors.
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    A Brief Critique of the TATES Procedure
    (Springer, 2018-03) Aliev, Fazil; Salvatore, Jessica E.; Agrawal, Arpana; Almasy, Laura; Chan, Grace; Edenberg, Howard J.; Hesselbrock, Victor; Kuperman, Samuel; Meyers, Jacquelyn; Dick, Danielle M.; Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Medicine
    The Trait-based test that uses the Extended Simes procedure (TATES) was developed as a method for conducting multivariate GWAS for correlated phenotypes whose underlying genetic architecture is complex. In this paper, we provide a brief methodological critique of the TATES method using simulated examples and a mathematical proof. Our simulated examples using correlated phenotypes show that the Type I error rate is higher than expected, and that more TATES p values fall outside of the confidence interval relative to expectation. Thus the method may result in systematic inflation when used with correlated phenotypes. In a mathematical proof we further demonstrate that the distribution of TATES p values deviates from expectation in a manner indicative of inflation. Our findings indicate the need for caution when using TATES for multivariate GWAS of correlated phenotypes.
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    Characterization of Service Use for Alcohol Problems Across Generations and Sex in Adults With Alcohol Use Disorder
    (Wiley, 2020-03) Bourdon, Jessica L.; Tillman, Rebecca; Francis, Meredith W.; Dick, Danielle M.; Stephenson, Mallory; Kamarajan, Chella; Edenberg, Howard J.; Kramer, John; Kuperman, Samuel; Bucholz, Kathleen K.; McCutcheon, Vivia V.; Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Medicine
    Background: There are gaps in the literature on service use (help-seeking and treatment utilization) for alcohol problems among those with alcohol use disorder (AUD). First, policy changes and cultural shifts (e.g., insurance) related to AUD have occurred over the last few decades, making it important to study generational differences. Second, multiple studies have found that females receive fewer services than males, and exploring whether these sex differences persist across generations can inform public health and research endeavors. The current study examined service use for alcohol problems among individuals with AUD. The aims were as follows: (i) to describe service use for alcohol problems; (ii) to assess generational differences (silent [b. 1928 to 1945], boomer [b. 1946 to 1964], generation X [b. 1965 to 1980], millennial [b. 1981 to 1996]) in help-seeking and treatment utilization; and (iii) to examine sex differences across generations. Methods: Data were from affected family members of probands who participated in the Collaborative Study on the Genetics of Alcoholism (N = 4,405). First, frequencies for service use variables were calculated across generations. Pearson chi-square and ANOVA were used to test for differences in rates and types of service use across generations, taking familial clustering into account. Next, Cox survival modeling was used to assess associations of generation and sex with time to first help-seeking and first treatment for AUD, and time from first onset of AUD to first help-seeking and first treatment. Interactions between generation and sex were tested within each Cox regression. Results: Significant hazards were found in all 4 transitions. Overall, younger generations used services earlier than older generations, which translated into higher likelihoods of these behaviors. Regardless of generation, younger females were less likely to use services than males. Conclusions: There are generational and sex differences in service use for alcohol problems among individuals with AUD. Policy and clinical implications are discussed.
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    Clinical, genomic, and neurophysiological correlates of lifetime suicide attempts among individuals with alcohol dependence
    (medRxiv, 2023-04-29) Barr, Peter B.; Neale, Zoe; Schulman, Jessica; Mullins, Niamh; Zhang, Jian; Chorlian, David B.; Kamarajan, Chella; Kinreich, Sivan; Pandey, Ashwini K.; Pandey, Gayathri; Saenz de Viteri, Stacey; Acion, Laura; Bauer, Lance; Bucholz, Kathleen K.; Chan, Grace; Chao, Michael; Dick, Danielle M.; Edenberg, Howard J.; Foroud, Tatiana; Goate, Alison; Hesselbrock, Victor; Johnson, Emma C.; Kramer, John; Lai, Dongbing; Plawecki, Martin H.; Salvatore, Jessica E.; Wetherill, Leah; Agrawal, Arpana; Porjesz, Bernice; Meyers, Jacquelyn L.; Medical and Molecular Genetics, School of Medicine
    Research has identified clinical, genomic, and neurophysiological markers associated with suicide attempts (SA) among individuals with psychiatric illness. However, there is limited research among those with an alcohol use disorder, despite their disproportionately higher rates of SA. We examined lifetime SA in 4,068 individuals with DSM-IV alcohol dependence from the Collaborative Study on the Genetics of Alcoholism (23% lifetime suicide attempt; 53% female; 17% Admixed African American ancestries; mean age: 38). We 1) explored clinical risk factors associated with SA, 2) conducted a genome-wide association study of SA, 3) examined whether individuals with a SA had elevated polygenic scores for comorbid psychiatric conditions (e.g., alcohol use disorders, lifetime suicide attempt, and depression), and 4) explored differences in electroencephalogram neural functional connectivity between those with and without a SA. One gene-based finding emerged, RFX3 (Regulatory Factor X, located on 9p24.2) which had supporting evidence in prior research of SA among individuals with major depression. Only the polygenic score for suicide attempts was associated with reporting a suicide attempt (OR = 1.20, 95% CI = 1.06, 1.37). Lastly, we observed decreased right hemispheric frontal-parietal theta and decreased interhemispheric temporal-parietal alpha electroencephalogram resting-state coherences among those participants who reported a SA relative to those who did not, but differences were small. Overall, individuals with alcohol dependence who report SA appear to experience a variety of severe comorbidities and elevated polygenic risk for SA. Our results demonstrate the need to further investigate suicide attempts in the presence of substance use disorders.
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    COVID-19 pandemic stressors are associated with reported increases in frequency of drunkenness among individuals with a history of alcohol use disorder
    (Springer Nature, 2023-10-06) Meyers, Jacquelyn L.; McCutcheon, Vivia V.; Horne-Osipenko, Kristina A.; Waters, Lawrence R.; Barr, Peter; Chan, Grace; Chorlian, David B.; Johnson, Emma C.; Kuo, Sally I-Chun; Kramer, John R.; Dick, Danielle M.; Kuperman, Samuel; Kamarajan, Chella; Pandey, Gayathri; Singman, Dzov; Subbie-Saenz de Viteri, Stacey; Salvatore, Jessica E.; Bierut, Laura J.; Foroud, Tatiana; Goate, Alison; Hesselbrock, Victor; Nurnberger, John; Plaweck, Martin H.; Schuckit, Marc A.; Agrawal, Arpana; Edenberg, Howard J.; Bucholz, Kathleen K.; Porjesz, Bernice; Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, School of Medicine
    Some sources report increases in alcohol use have been observed since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly among women. Cross-sectional studies suggest that specific COVID-19-related stressful experiences (e.g., social disconnection) may be driving such increases in the general population. Few studies have explored these topics among individuals with a history of Alcohol Use Disorders (AUD), an especially vulnerable population. Drawing on recent data collected by the Collaborative Study on the Genetics of Alcoholism (COGA; COVID-19 study N = 1651, 62% women, age range: 30-91) in conjunction with AUD history data collected on the sample since 1990, we investigated associations of COVID-19 related stressors and coping activities with changes in drunkenness frequency since the start of the pandemic. Analyses were conducted for those without a history of AUD (N: 645) and three groups of participants with a history of AUD prior to the start of the pandemic: (1) those experiencing AUD symptoms (N: 606), (2) those in remission who were drinking (N: 231), and (3) those in remission who were abstinent (had not consumed alcohol for 5+ years; N: 169). Gender-stratified models were also examined. Exploratory analyses examined the moderating effects of 'problematic alcohol use' polygenic risk scores (PRS) and neural connectivity (i.e., posterior interhemispheric alpha EEG coherence) on associations between COVID-19 stressors and coping activities with changes in the frequency of drunkenness. Increases in drunkenness frequency since the start of the pandemic were higher among those with a lifetime AUD diagnosis experiencing symptoms prior to the start of the pandemic (14% reported increased drunkenness) when compared to those without a history of AUD (5% reported increased drunkenness). Among individuals in remission from AUD prior to the start of the pandemic, rates of increased drunkenness were 10% for those who were drinking pre-pandemic and 4% for those who had previously been abstinent. Across all groups, women reported nominally greater increases in drunkenness frequency when compared with men, although only women experiencing pre-pandemic AUD symptoms reported significantly greater rates of increased drunkenness since the start of the pandemic compared to men in this group (17% of women vs. 5% of men). Among those without a prior history of AUD, associations between COVID-19 risk and protective factors with increases in drunkenness frequency were not observed. Among all groups with a history of AUD (including those with AUD symptoms and those remitted from AUD), perceived stress was associated with increases in drunkenness. Among the remitted-abstinent group, essential worker status was associated with increases in drunkenness. Gender differences in these associations were observed: among women in the remitted-abstinent group, essential worker status, perceived stress, media consumption, and decreased social interactions were associated with increases in drunkenness. Among men in the remitted-drinking group, perceived stress was associated with increases in drunkenness, and increased relationship quality was associated with decreases in drunkenness. Exploratory analyses indicated that associations between family illness or death with increases in drunkenness and increased relationship quality with decreases in drunkenness were more pronounced among the remitted-drinking participants with higher PRS. Associations between family illness or death, media consumption, and economic hardships with increases in drunkenness and healthy coping with decreases in drunkenness were more pronounced among the remitted-abstinent group with lower interhemispheric alpha EEG connectivity. Our results demonstrated that only individuals with pre-pandemic AUD symptoms reported greater increases in drunkenness frequency since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic compared to those without a lifetime history of AUD. This increase was more pronounced among women than men in this group. However, COVID-19-related stressors and coping activities were associated with changes in the frequency of drunkenness among all groups of participants with a prior history of AUD, including those experiencing AUD symptoms, as well as abstinent and non-abstinent participants in remission. Perceived stress, essential worker status, media consumption, social connections (especially for women), and relationship quality (especially for men) are specific areas of focus for designing intervention and prevention strategies aimed at reducing pandemic-related alcohol misuse among this particularly vulnerable group. Interestingly, these associations were not observed for individuals without a prior history of AUD, supporting prior literature that demonstrates that widespread stressors (e.g., pandemics, terrorist attacks) disproportionately impact the mental health and alcohol use of those with a prior history of problems.