THE DMAC STUDY

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This subproject is one of many research subprojects utilizing the resources provided by a Center grant funded by NIH/NCRR. The subproject and investigator (PI) may have received primary funding from another NIH source, and thus could be represented in other CRISP entries. The institution listed is for the Center, which is not necessarily the institution for the investigator. Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) methylation, which is thought to play an important role in carcinogenesis, is an emerging area of epigenetic research. A recent Request For Applications (RFA) (AA-06-005) from the National Institutes of Health (NIH), to which a multidisciplinary investigative group from UCHC responded (Drs. Bonkovsky, Hesselbrock, Lalande, and Lambrecht) targeted epigenetic effects of alcohol and its metabolism as an important area of research. Alcohol has long been associated with cancer and has recently been associated with increased DNA methylation levels. In this pilot study, we propose to determine whether and how DNA methylation patterns in chronic alcoholics are different from suitable controls. This will be the first step in finding out if DNA methylation patterns are altered in subjects with chronic alcohol dependence and provide important pilot data for later, larger proposals to the NIH and other external funding agencies focused on mechanisms whereby alcohol and its metabolites influence cancer risk and other epigenetic effects.