More broadly, with respect to G × E studies of alcohol use outcomes, there are sex differences in processes including alcohol metabolism (Mancinelli et al., 2009); levels of reproductive- and stress-related hormones (Witt, 2007); subjective and neurobiological responses to alcohol intoxication (Wang et al., 2003); and in the latent genetic influences shared between AUD and endophenotypes such as alcohol sensitivity (Heath et al., 1999). Bringing together theory and evidence about how environments and processes differ across the sexes may help build a cohesive body of knowledge about the pathways from sex-specific genetic effects to clinically significant meaningful outcomes (Short et al., 2013).
