Grant: Team Grant: Early origins of addiction in children and youth (Canada - Finland)

This proposal will focus on identifying genetic and environmental predictors of the acquisition, development and persistence of drug addiction and the amount of a drug consumed. We will take advantage of the wealth of data available from three datasets in two countries including twin, longitudinal and family cohorts. The subjects have been followed since childhood and surveyed for a variety of potential influences on drug addiction throughout childhood and into young adulthood. Within the three cohorts we are able to examine environmental, genetic (using a genome wide approach, followed by a detailed examination of specific genes identified, and epigenetic assessments) and biochemical (for amount of drug use and the speed the body gets rid of the drug) predictors as well as their interactions. Of particular note is that among the three cohorts we have extensive data from an intensive study (4 survey's per year throughout youth), assessment of maternal drug use, evaluation in trios (parents and child), twin data sets as well as the ability to compare these results from two environmental settings (ie two countries) and extend into additional cohorts/countries for replication. In addition to outstanding data collection from a wide age range we have the ability to determine genetic variation in both twin pairs and in family groupings, extending our ability to investigate genetic and environmental influences. To complement these genetic and epidemiological approaches we can determine smoking quantity and rates of nicotine inactivation from biomarkers collected at multiple times within the cohorts. This allows biochemical validation of the survey measures, a more robust association with genetic predictors of amount consumed over time, and the ability to use the rate of nicotine inactivation as a predictor of acquisition of smoking behaviours - something we have done successfully on a pilot scale which can now be done in these large and informative longitudinal cohorts.