Two studies have found that genotypes predictive of alcohol addiction (i.e., rs279871 A homozygotes, rs279826 G homozygotes, rs279858 G homozygotes), are also associated with enhanced neural response to reward predictors in brain regions associated with subjective valuation, including the vmPFC [95] and insula [96••]. While these studies suggest that GABRA2 risk variants may confer vulnerability to alcohol addiction by enhancing the subjective valuation of external cues, there was no evidence that genotype predicted craving [95]. One possibility is that this enhanced reactivity in regions critical for subjective valuation may drive urgent and impulsive attempts to regulate negative emotional states [96••].
