Drug addiction is a widely misunderstood condition. The debate between timeless nature and nurture is often brought up when talking about drug addiction. Is addiction a mental illness or a consequence of poor lifestyle choices? Are some people more susceptible than others to becoming addicted? The answers to these questions come down to analyzing genes and whether their role influences drug addiction. Research from the National Institute on Drug Abuse from 2013 shows that most drug addictions begin under the age of eighteen, and drug use is highest among those in their late teens or early twenties. As a young adult, these statistics are scary. Understanding more about the science behind addiction can help researchers and healthcare professionals develop the tools they need to prevent drug addiction and rehabilitate those who suffer every day. A 2017 study published in Scientific Reports titled "Association of the PLCB1 gene with drug addiction" explores the genetic risk factors underlying addiction. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay The article begins by introducing the idea that the scientific community understands that addiction has some level of heritability, but the specific genetic risk factors involved remain unknown. They also mention the results of other relevant studies, including the importance of microRNAs (miRNAs) in psychological disorders such as drug addiction. MiRNAs, as described in the article, are non-coding RNA molecules in the central nervous system that modify gene expression by binding to mRNAs and causing their degradation. The studies mentioned essentially demonstrate that people with a certain level of drug addiction have upregulated or altered miRNAs in the frontal lobe, the part of the brain responsible for cognitive processes and decision making. Other studies mentioned discuss single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and their role in altering the binding process between miRNA and mRNA. Based on this previous research, scientists began examining the role of miRNAs and SNPs in drug addiction. Their main hypothesis was that certain SNPs alter gene expression produced by miRNA and mRNA binding and influence an individual's susceptibility to drug addiction. The subjects of the experiment were patients from a psychiatric hospital in Barcelona who had been diagnosed with substance addiction in 73.5% of cases. of which they were addicted to cocaine. Controls were also recruited, for a total of 735 patients and 739 controls to work with. They began by isolating DNA samples from all the subjects. Then, they localized SNPs in target genes that they predicted would alter miRNA and mRNA binding, using Kompetitive Allele Specific PCR (KASP) technology. Furthermore, they decided to test the effect of cocaine use on the expression of the PLCB1 gene by examining the genetic expression of cocaine users with quantitative PCR. They ultimately found significant associations in the gene frequencies of seven different genes associated with these SNPs. They ran the same test again with another sample of individuals and found that two of the seven genes once again had significantly associated SNPs. However, when analyzing both patient and control samples, only one SNP on the PLCB1 gene was significantly associated with drug dependence. All associations found were tested with statistical analyses, including tests.