Chunk #33 — Explanations for Lower Alcohol Use among African Americans Compared to European Americans — Historical Perspective — Biological Vulnerability and Response to Alcohol
ADH variants that metabolize alcohol more quickly and ALDH variants that metabolize acetaldehyde more slowly have been found to offer protection against alcohol dependence and heavy alcohol use (Luczak, Glatt, & Wall, 2006; Whitfield, 2002). The hypothesized mechanism for this protection is higher transient levels of acetaldehyde, which can produce stronger physiological and subjective responses at a given dose of alcohol. The most robust effects have been documented for a variant of the ALDH2 gene, ALDH2*2. Specifically, ALDH2*2 has been linked to increased sensitivity towards both the positive and negative effects of alcohol (Luczak, Elvine-Kreis, Shea, Carr, & Wall., 2002; Nishimura et al., 2001; Nishimura et al., 2002; Takeshita & Morimoto, 1999; Thomasson, Crabb, Edenberg, & Li, 1993; Wall, 2005; Wall, Thomasson, & Ehlers, 1996; Wall, Thomasson, Schuckit, & Ehlers., 1992) and lower levels of quantity and frequency of drinking (Luczak, Wall, Shea, Byun, & Carr, 2001; Takeshita & Morimoto, 1999; Wall, Shea, Chan, & Carr, 2001) among individuals of Asian descent.
