Developing an addiction and achieving academic success share a genetic basis.

BarcelonaThere are genetic factors that simultaneously influence the risk of develop an addictive disorder and a low level of educational success. This is the main conclusion of a study led by scientists from the Vall d'Hebron Research Institute (VHIR), who have discovered that some genetic variants simultaneously predispose individuals to a higher genetic predisposition to both conditions, although it does not clarify whether one causes the other or whether they influence each other. The scientific journal Addiction The results of the research, which involved more than 1,400 people diagnosed with substance use disorders such as cocaine, opiates, cannabis, and sedatives, will be published this Thursday. The researchers conducted a comprehensive analysis of the genetic variants of these individuals, called a genome-wide association study (GWAS), with the aim of identifying variants that simultaneously influence the risk of addiction and educational success. According to the authors, this relationship has been observed repeatedly in studies, but until now there was no solid genetic evidence to explain their correlation. The results of the study have finally identified a set of genetic variants that increase the risk of addiction and are also associated with lower educational attainment. However, these results do not establish a direct cause-and-effect relationship—having these genes does not condemn anyone to have problems with drug addiction or in school—but rather a shared genetic risk that interacts with many other factors, such as environment, education, and personal experiences. These genetic variants not only play a significant role in the development of substance use disorders, but have also been linked to poorer health and more unfavorable socioeconomic conditions. Despite the identified genetic overlap, the study does not resolve the direction of the influence between addiction and educational attainment. "Although we found consistent evidence of shared variants, our work cannot determine whether a lower level of education increases the risk of addiction, whether addiction hinders educational attainment, or whether both are true," explains Marta Ribasés, principal investigator of the Psychiatry, Mental Health, and Addictions group at VHI.

This work was carried out in collaboration with the Mental Health Area of the Biomedical Research Networking Center (CIBERSAM), the Rare Diseases Area of the Biomedical Research Networking Center (CIBERER), the San Juan de Dios Research Institute (IRS Barcelona) (UAB), and the University of California, San Diego.