Resetting the Alcoholic Brain

Adron Harris, director of the Waggoner Center for Alcoho and Addiction Research at The University of Texas at Austin, and his team mapped the differences in gene expression between an alcoholic's brain and a non-alcoholic's brain. They found that, as a person becomes dependent on alcohol, thousands of genes in their brains are turned up or down, like a dimmer switch on a lightbulb, compared to the same genes in a healthy person's brain. The scientists are now using an innovative technique to find drugs that can, in a sense, turn those switches back to their original settings and, they hope, revert an alcoholic's brain into a non-alcoholic brain. The work might help the millions of people who suffer with the emotional, financial and health consequences of alcoholism.

About Point of Discovery

Point of Discovery is a production of the University of Texas at Austin's College of Natural Sciences. You can listen to all our episodes at @point-of-discovery .

You can also subscribe via iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/point-of-discovery-podcast/id1036884430?mt=2
or via our RSS feed: http://feeds.soundcloud.com/users/soundcloud:users:150441582/sounds.rss
or via Stitcher: www.stitcher.com/podcast/point-of-discovery
or via Google Play: https://play.google.com/music/m/Igc5ifenl2bn7e5n2klmrwah7qq?t=Point_of_Discovery

Questions or comments about this episode, or our series in general? Email Marc Airhart at mairhart[AT]austin.utexas.edu

About Point of Discovery

Point of Discovery is a production of the University of Texas at Austin's College of Natural Sciences and is a part of the Texas Podcast Network. The opinions expressed in this podcast represent the views of the hosts and guests, and not of The University of Texas at Austin. You can listen via Apple Podcasts, Spotify, RSS, Amazon Podcasts, and more. Questions or comments about this episode or our series in general? Email Marc Airhart.