As highlighted by the World Health Organization: “The harmful use of alcohol is one of the world’s leading health risks. It is a causal factor in more than 60 major types of diseases and injuries and results in approximately 2.5 million deaths each year” (World Health Organization, 2011). Alcoholism, also known as alcohol dependence, is understood as a complex, chronic brain disease with critical biological, behavioral, and socioeconomic components (Leshner, 1997). Heritable factors among the critical biological components are reported to account for about 50% of the risk for alcohol use disorders (AUD), which underscores the impact of genetic elements on disease etiology (Gorini et al., 2011). Nevertheless, the molecular mechanisms underlying genetic adaptations due to excessive alcohol consumption are not fully understood.
