At the current level of alcohol consumption in the United States, it is believed that at least five percent of adult women develop alcohol dependence. Results from a national survey of drinking practices suggest that more women than men have family histories of alcoholism. This proposal is for continuation of research aimed at identifying markers that might be useful predictors of alcohol-related problems in women with family histories of alcoholism. Only a few potential biological markers for alcoholism have been investigated. These include comparisons of men with positive versus negative family histories of alcoholism. Such studies indicate differences in sensitivity to fixed doses of alcohol, as assessed by changes in plasma prolactin and cortisol levels, as well as measures of body sway. It also has been suggested that subjective effects and complex cognitive-perceptual tasks may be affected differently by alcohol in women. We propose to refine and extend ongoing research by examining covariance among five subjective, physiological, and behavioral effects of two fixed doses of alcohol (0.56 g/kg and 0.82 g/kg alcohol) in family history positive and family history negative women. Accordingly, we will compare alcohol sensitivity under counter-balanced, double-blind, placebo-controlled conditions that compensate for hormone fluctuations during the menstrual cycle. We will assess endocrine sensitivity to alcohol by measuring cortisol and prolactin levels, spontaneous changes in subjective alcohol effects by monitoring subjective responses with a precise and reliable continuous recording instrument, and we will assess magnitude and duration of cognitive-perceptual and performance changes on a complex divided attention task a on body sway. This study will provide a more comprehensive and integrated profile physiological, behavioral, and subjective indices that might indicate predisposition to alcohol problems in women.
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