Booze News: Drunken Fruit Flies Reveal Alcoholism Gene

     I came across this article from medicalnewstoday.com that detailed a study done on fruit flies to try to isolate the genes that affect alcohol sensitivity.  In this study, fruit flies were exposed to alcohol vapors in a tube-like contraption until they were utterly intoxicated.  The flies that had the highest tolerance to the vapors were mated with other lushes, and the lightweights with the lowest tolerance were also bred.  I don’t know much about the mating rituals of the fruit fly, but I’m willing to bet the alcoholics enjoyed it more.  If alcohol can impair my judgment with the ladies, I’m sure it can make an ugly fruit fly look like a delicious piece of orange to a fruit fly lush.  They must have been easier to mate.  After 25 generations of breeding and observation, the scientists identified 32 genes that affect alcohol sensitivity; seventy-two percent of these 32 have human counterparts.  

     Some of the changed genes these scientists discovered deal with metabolic pathways that convert alcohol to fat.  They were intrigued because these genes had never been studied before to suggest a link to alcohol sensitivity.  Who gives a damn about alcohol sensitivity?  If they found this gene that is a factor in converting alcohol to fat, why can’t they start working on some kind of drug that will help me keep my sleek and sexy appearance despite how much liquor I may consume?  Maybe some sort of drug could trick the body into converting the alcohol into muscle.  That would be great; I’d be one buff dude.  These researchers are hoping that their findings could someday lead to the creation of a drug to give to people with higher risk factors for alcoholism.  I’m sorry, but it just sounds ridiculous to me to give someone with a genetically-dispositioned addictive personality trait another drug upon which to become dependent!  It sounds like a wonderful way for a drug company to make some fat cash though.  I’m sure that cash is the ultimate motivator here. 

     I really don’t know if I buy into the “alcoholism gene” thing.  I can believe that some people may be a bit more geneticallly-predispositioned to develop addictions of any kind, be it alcoholism, drug abuse, gambling, or even sex.  I think the real key is how people choose to deal with problems that arise in life.  Some people may choose the bottle; some people will obviously choose more health-conscious routes.  ”To each his own” has always been my motto in regards to that.  I really can’t stand flies of any kind because they annoy me to no end, and I damn sure don’t want to listen to anything regarding them.  I don’t need to use my genes as an excuse to the decisions I make in life, so damn the flies for trying to persuade me to do so!    

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