A Gene that Causes Hangovers?

A recent Australian study has discovered an underlying genetic factor that makes some people more resistant to hangovers than others. The study found that genetic factors accounted for 45% of a difference in hangover frequency in women and 40% in men. The other factors that affect a person's susceptibility to hangovers include how quickly a person drinks, whether a person eats while they drink, and a person's tolerance for alcohol. During the study, it was found that people with the genetic variation that caused an increased frequency of hangovers also drank to the point of becoming intoxicated more frequently than their counterparts. Because of this, it may be possible that the same gene that dictates how frequently a person gets hungover may also explain how frequently a person gets drunk in the first place. It is hoped that continuing this research could help scientists learn more about the genes related to alcoholism. Until then, researchers in Australia are hard at work trying to pinpoint the exact gene that increases hangover frequencies in people.

This study was really interesting to me. I was aware of there being a genetic factor involved in alcoholism, but I didn't know that even the frequency of getting a hangover could be partially dictated by genes. It was surprising and just goes to show how important our genes are in determining many components of a person's life. I hope that this research leads scientists in a direction that could help deter the effects of a night of drinking.

The original article can be found here.
A similar article can be found here.

Genetically Modified Yeast May Boost Health Benefits of Wine

Yeast is a very important part of the production of fermented foods. Such as cheese, wine, and beer. For many decades scientists have struggled with altering the genomes of yeast due to polyploidy. Polyploidy is problematic because once you successfully manage to alter a specific gene the unchanged copies can automatically correct the modification. This undoes the entire process. Scientists at the University of Illinois recently created a enzyme that acts as a, "knife", which seletcively slices through multiple copies of a gene in a very specific manner. The researchers showed that it is possible to use this to modify the genome of the industrial strain of yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Saccharomyces cerevisiae is mainly used in the production of beer, wine, and other fermented products.

This is turn can reduce hangovers and increase the nutritional benefits of wine. This happens because the genetically modified yeast contains 10 times the amount of resveratol, a powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory that is associated with a plethora of health benefits. I believe this is a great discovery in genetics. This is because it is applying science to another aspect of our lives to improve it, along with our health. It also may bring science to light of people who do not normally care for it, which could increase funding. This study also gave scientist's insight on a specific way of looking at genes that could determine flavor.

http://www.iflscience.com/technology/gm-yeast-could-boost-health-benefits-wine-and-reduce-hangovers

Hangover blues? Blame your genes.

      A new study shows that hangovers, at least in part, may be attributed to your genetic makeup. Researchers tested this hypothesis on twins in Australia and found that, in addition to some outside factors, in some cases people can consume the same amount of alcohol as another person and not have a hangover, while the other person will get a hangover. "Researchers looked for links between peoples genetic makeup and the amount of hangovers they had reported in a year," while taking factors such as consumption time, tolerance and if and how much food was consumed while drinking into consideration. Researchers used twins to reenforce their hypothesis that alcohol resistance is genetic by asking the twins about their drinking in the past year. They found that in many cases the twins hangover levels were very similar. Data showed that people with "hangover genes" were more likely to drink to the point of intoxication more often than people without the "hangover genes," yet would less frequently get hangovers. This phenomenon has raised questions regarding alcohol abuse becoming a problem more often in people with "hangover genes". This information could help reenforce the notion of genetic alcoholism.
http://news.discovery.com/human/genetics/hangovers-are-about-half-genetic-140826.htm

Is Your Hangover Genetic?

Researchers in Australia studying sets of twins found that between 40-45% of hangovers are due to genetic factors. This team also found that those who have the gene variants of increased hangovers also tend to drink more to the point of intoxication and in turn, have a greater risk for having an alcohol addiction. Although having a hangover also depends on how much, how fast, and how frequent one drinks, there is a genetic factor that may be caused by the genetic nature of alcoholism. So remember, next time you're hungover it is 40-45% your parent's fault!

Original Article: http://news.discovery.com/human/genetics/hangovers-are-about-half-genetic-140826.htm

Related Article: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25098862