To date, only a few studies have incorporated specific environmental factors into genetic association studies of alcohol phenotypes (Covault et al., 2007; Ducci et al., 2007; Kaufman et al., 2007). One showed that early drinking onset or alcoholism were predicted by childhood maltreatment but that this risk was significantly elevated among those with at least one copy of the s allele of 5-HTTLPR.40 Another showed that the low-activity variant in MAOA-linked polymorphic region (MAOA-LPR) interacted with childhood sexual abuse to predict antisocial alcoholism in females (Ducci et al., 2007). Family studies often provide preliminary evidence that particular issues merit further study in a genetic context. Results of the present study suggest that childhood or adolescent parental divorce/separation merits investigation as a potential moderator of the effects of specific genetic variants.
