Recent studies have employed the use of subject-specific induced stem cell technology to model, characterize and elucidate mechanisms underlying various types of addiction disorders including AUD [22–25]. The generation of specific subtypes of cultured human neurons enables the study of formerly inaccessible functional properties using standard neuroscience methods [22, 24–26]. The contribution of various KCNJ6 SNPs was found to affect a variety of properties associated with neuronal function or sensitivity to drugs of abuse, suggesting targets for potential therapeutic interventions. Associating specific genetic variants with mechanisms contributing to addictive behaviors may produce more effective therapies tailored to individual genotypes.
