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Summary Scientists have identified a gene which plays a role in regulating how much alcohol people drink.
An international team of scientists, with the help of 47,000 participants, found that people who have a rarer version of a gene called ‘AUTS2’ drink five percent less alcohol than people with the more common version of the gene. Scientists believe that their findings could help the search for more effective treatments for alcoholism.After identifying ‘AUTS2’, the scientists analysed that people with the version of the gene linked to lower alcohol consumption had higher activity of the gene.According to the World Health Organisation, harmful use of alcohol results in 2.5 million deaths a year globally. It is the worlds third largest risk factor for causing diseases as well as various forms of cancer.
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