have rarely been examined within a GxE framework. Perhaps this is because statistical power is challenged in typical circumstances, and power may be untenable if these complexities are modeled. Further, it is often unclear how to conceptualize such features – do they reflect genetic vulnerability, environmental risk or a mixture? While it seems unlikely that genetic effects on drinking behaviors are independent of environmental context, or likewise that environmental causes of drinking are unaffected by genotype, the presence of significant methodological limitations and lack of unambiguous replications in this literature make it difficult to draw definitive conclusions regarding the nature and effect size of alcohol-related GxE. Continued rigorous study and replication of alcohol-related GxE is needed to clarify inconsistent genotype-AUD association studies and to identify the mechanisms by which genes and environmental factors combine to influence the development of drinking behaviors.
