Future studies will benefit from incorporating emerging, novel techniques to further advance our understanding of the functional genomics contributing to the development and outcomes of AUD. Improvements in technologies that allow the analysis of multiple human brain samples or pooled cultures from multiple participants to reduce variability and costs will be key. HTRAs such as PASSPORT‐seq have begun to model regulatory function of SNP variants in models of the appropriate cell types. 20 , 23 The high‐throughput features of these techniques allow the functional evaluation of larger cohorts, enabling a population‐level resolution of these studies. Functional validation of omics is essential to contextualize molecular findings in cellular mechanisms underlying AUD. Integration of proteome, transcriptome, and genome‐wide association data is a powerful approach to identifying novel brain proteins underlying substance use disorders, such as smoking, cannabis use disorder, opioid use disorder, and alcohol use disorder. 14 , 83 Furthermore, region‐specific proteomics of the prefrontal lobe and motor cortex revealed AUD‐linked alterations in metabolic enzymes, as well as changes in cytoskeleton and excitotoxicity associated proteins. 84
