How Psychogenetics &
Nutrigenomics Began
|
|
|
.
|
|
The Kenneth Blum, PhD Life Story: A man seeking truth while reaching for the Stars.
Previous
|
1
|
2
| 3 |
4
|
5
|
6
|
Next
References
just about anything I could read about genetics and the current knowledge of genes. Then one afternoon, I told Sheridan that we will find a gene for alcoholism. Going back to my office I decided to call Ernest Noble, now at UCLA following a stint as the director of the NIAAA. At that time Noble was actively working on neuro-biochemistry and electrophysiology of Children of Alcoholics (COAs). It seemed to me that this was a wonderful sample to begin our 'needle in the haystack" search for one gene in 100,000 (at that time). We now know that there are 30, 000 in the human genome. When I called Ernie, I simply asked him if he was interested in finding a gene for alcoholism. He said, "Ken are you losing your mind?...Or, if you are serious, of course!" I immediately explained RFFLP and half-way through the conversation Ernie shouted out "Anne (his long time assistant) book me a flight to San Antonio, Texas." At our meeting in San Antonio, Noble suggested that we start our experiments with brain tissue of both alcoholics and non-alcoholics so that if we were actually lucky enough to find a gene or genes associated with severe alcoholism we could carry out subsequent receptor experiments. Thus in 1988, Noble secured a grant from the Seaver Foundation in Los Angeles and we embarked on an experiment that ultimately led to discovery of the first specific molecular link to alcoholism.
A year into the project, after exploring at least 7 candidate genes based on the "Brain Reward Cascade," all of which were failures, an overwhelming state of depression came over me. I told my family, especially Arlene, "At this rate I will never live to see the day that a gene polymorphism associates with Alcoholism...it is like finding a needle in a haystack." Both Jeff and Seth (my sons) reminded me of what I preached to them, emphatically saying, "Dad, never give up -Never give up your dreams." So, I didn't! Remarkably, shortly after this, a most exciting thing happened. I would routinely drive my children to school early in the morning, and then casually have breakfast at The Omni Hotel near the medical center. One December morning a headline on the front page of the Wall Street Journal got my attention. Scientists at the University of Oregon Medical School had cloned the Dopamine D2 receptor gene for studies involving Schizophrenia. I immediately called my friend and colleague, Olivio Civelli,42 only to realize that it was too early for a response. Frantically, I told my secretary to call Olivio on a speed dial every 15 minutes until he picks up. Finally, at 10:15 Pacific time, Olivio was on the phone. The conversation briefly resulted in Civelli criticizing my desire to obtain the cDNA clone because he believed that there could not be a gene for alcoholism. With great hesitation, Olivio agreed to send me the clone, I had only one condition. I asked him not to send the clone to anyone in the addiction field. I sent him 1,000 names previously on the editorial board of the Journal of Alcohol and Substance Abuse Actions and Misuse and individual subscribers. He agreed.
A few weeks later, I was part of a select American contingency invited to Moscow, still under communist rule, to develop ALANON in Russia. Being a huge fan of jazz, I was excited to be traveling with Monica Getz, an ALANON delegate, the widow of Stan Getz, the great jazz musician who unfortunately succumbed to alcoholism. Meeting Ron Jeremy (a huge porn star...no pun intended) at the New York Airport with one of his new starlets and talking about drug abuse should have been enough to warn me about the strange happenings that were about to occur (money laundering, talking to a Russian Spy, incarceration of a native female past curfew) on the upcoming trip. The night before we had to exit the country, I found the door to my room at The Rousia Hotel ajar. Looking down at my suitcase on the floor, I realized that I had been robbed. They took my Armani, Cannali, Brioni, and Lanza jeans and shoes, and all my presents for home, leaving only one ugly Sear Sucker suit. Have I mentioned that I love clothes? That evening I had been honored by the Russian Academy of Sciences by sitting in Lennon's chair (booked two months in advance) overlooking the Kremlin at the famed National Hotel. A strange night for all present, loaded with expensive Red Caviar and ending in an attempted strangulation of a drunken waiter by the embarrassed director of the Russian equivalent to the NIAAA.
October 18 1989, I found myself asking for money to find the gene or genes for alcoholism in the office of a very prominent billionaire San Antonio business man, Red McCombs. He is the former owner of the San Antonio Spurs, the Minnesota Vikings and Clear Channel Communications. Leaving the meeting to take a call from an excited Ernest Noble, he gleefully told me, "Ken we got it -we got the first gene to associate with alcoholism my friend!" I then just as gleefully went back into the meeting and told Red, "We found a gene for alcoholism...it is the dopamine D2 receptor gene - can we have the money now?" McCombs smiled and said without hesitation, "That is just wonderful, now you don't need the money anymore". I left laughing to myself knowing that our work had just begun!
Noble and I decided that we had sufficient data to submit a paper to JAMA, the premier American clinical journal. After many discussions, visits to UCLA, and many drafts, we were ready to submit. The night before submission, I had promised Ernie that I would call him with my final changes that night . That call from me, the only one I was allowed, came from the Austin Texas Jailhouse at the exact moment when Ernie was under his desk trying to escape the effects of a Los Angeles earthquake. Yes, we were rocking the world! Did I mention that I'm a terrible driver!
While I was visiting Noble at his office at UCLA., George Lundberg, the editor of JAMA, called and personally congratulated Ernie and I, not only accepting our gene paper but asking us if we would be available for a press conference at the steps of the NIAAA. "Hold onto the phone, I am calling Enoch Gordis the director of NIAAA to set it up sometime in April". Anxiously waiting for a response from Gordis -"The paper sounds very interesting and we would love to see it and comment on it but I will be away during that time". Subsequently the paper was published April 18th 1990 along with an NIAAA comment.43,44
JAMA sent out over 5,000 press releases to global media outlets, which resulted in a three week pre interview media blitz at UCLA. On April 18th, a televised press release included our appearance on the TODAY show. Good Morning America, among many others covered the story. In fact, every major newspaper in the world covered the story. Time Magazine, Newsweek, Business Daily, the Economist, just to name a few, featured Noble and me and our discovery. The research made it to Discovery Magazine's "Top Fifty List". Jay Leno announced it on the Tonight show -"Experts in Texas and California found a gene for alcoholism! Guess where they found it?- In a bar!" Conan O'Brien also exclaimed on his show- "Did you hear, scientists found a gene for alcoholism- wow, now when you drink you have an excuse!" Excitement was in the air and while we turned down the Oprah show [probably a first] we had our 15 minutes of fame. However, as my mother would say- "Get back to work!" - So, we did.
The importance of this discovery was that it probably had a great effect on reducing the stigma associated with alcoholism. After the tremendous interest it generated in the media for the first time, a Gallop Poll on the following day, found that 56% of people now believed that Alcoholism was biological; not due to will-power. In spite of all of this, while scientists at NIDA, like George Uhl, supported the finding for drug abuse,45 scientists at NIDA did not support it for alcoholism. I was awakened by a phone call from Eric Braverman on Christmas day in 1991, telling me that I was being crucified on TV by David Goldman from NIAAA. The NIAAA scientists had published a paper in JAMA on a non-confirmatory study46 and the war began. Eric, my astute friend being also an ordained Rabbi (and a Jew for Jesus), continued the conversation, "Don't worry Ken, they crucified Jesus, and he transcended all criticism and was resurrected as the son of G_d-maybe that is why you wear the beard...." Although it took over 20 years for vindication from NIAAA scientists as well as others such as Joel Gelernter from Yale, Braverman's prophecy was realized.47,48
Reflecting back to the days of both excitement and controversy, I remember, as if it was only yesterday when Joel Gelernter asked me a crucial question -"What was your phenotype " (a good genetic study needs a pure phenotype or a defined disease). Surrounded by the giants in the field at Uhl's meeting at NIDA on the dopamine D2 receptor gene, including the world class geneticist David E. Comings,49 the first person to confirm our work, I responded - "great question Joel unlike your study from which anyone having liver enzyme problems was eliminated50 (Cirrhosis included), our phenotype was death from alcoholism. In fact, eighty percent of our subjects had Cirrhosis of the liver".
In that same year my book with James Payne hit the newsstands. The book was developed four years earlier with the encouragement of Laura Wolf an editor of the Free Press in New York City. Through an advance, Payne and I travelled ten thousand miles, visited 26 laboratories and 9 treatment centers throughout the United States as well as visiting colleagues in Canada, England, France, Italy, Germany, Finland, Demark, Sweden, Asia, and Russia. The book "Alcohol and the Addictive Brain" 51 held out new hope for alcoholics based on biogenetic research and received praise from many including David E. Smith -"-----Always exciting and thought-provoking". Recently, James Payne who is 96 years young told me that he just finished a book on cognition and mind. I imagine that he carries the newly discovered longevity gene. Boston scientists used microarray analysis of centurions, to find, with seventy-seven percent accuracy, that "gene clusters seem to trump disease-causing genes that would otherwise cause common problems of aging."
Following our initial discovery, Noble and I now turned our attention to understanding the possible mechanism of not an alcohol gene per se but a reward gene. Ernie's brilliant idea paid off because using the brain tissue of our samples we found that carriers of the DRD2 A1 form of the gene had approximately 30-40 percent less D2 receptors in the brain. Additionally, if carriers had two copies, one from each parent, the amount of receptors was lower than if they only had one copy of the A1 form52. This work has been confirmed by many.53
Many experiments since the initial finding in 1990 have verified the D2 receptor gene to be associated with a variety of impulsive, compulsive, and addictive behaviors, including poly-substance dependence, crack cocaine, smoking, carbohydrate bingeing, pathological gambling, Tourettes Syndrome, posttraumatic stress disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, internet gaming, lying, and sexual addiction among many other devastating related conditions.54, 55
Among those naysayers, Stanton Peel, a psychologist stands out. He has been fighting the disease concept of alcoholism and drug abuse for years. He is among the few who erroneously believe that you could teach people how to control drinking independent of any genetic predisposition. I found myself and Stanton being escorted off the Sonia Live TV show after jumping out of my chair leaping towards him, .His stupidity had almost driven me to madness!
, One hot summer day I was walking through a Nutracon Annual meeting in San Antonio, Texas, when I met B. William Downs and D. Bagchi, who were to become two very important people in my life. At that time, we were in opposite camps. As a paid consultant for Nutrition 21, I was publishing a number of papers with Gilbert Kaats in support of Chromium Picolinate,56 not polynicotinate, which was the product being developed by their company InterHealth Nutraceuticals, Inc. Up until the present day I am in partnership with my dear friend William Downs and still a good friend and colleague of Debasis Bagchi and his wife Manashi Bagchi, occasionally publishing together.57 James Redfield would argue that this is another example of a non-accident. Dr. Bagchi has also published papers and held conferences on nutrigenomics. In a recent conversation with me about genomics and life's mystery, Dr. Bagchi exclaimed " "very good -very good!"
In May 1995, when my son Jeff graduated from Boston University Law School, I encountered Perry Molinoff. He was a colleague and a brilliant scientist who I invited to the first Gordon Research Conference on Alcohol. He said, "Ken you must be so proud of Jeff. -"I am Perry, and you must be very proud of your son Jeff as well". I could not quite get Perry's drift until Arlene and I looked at the program much to our delight and surprise --- The Alumni Award for the three year highest cumulative academic score goes to Jeffrey H. Blum. Not only was I ecstatic about Jeff's accomplishment but I was also ecstatic listening to Perry Molinoff at a seminar at the University of Texas Health Science Center. His team showed that either dopamine or a dopamine D2 agonist like bromocryptin could proliferate D2 receptors in vitro, in spite of the genetics. Sitting there it came to me...
continue reading
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Reward Deficiency Solutions Systems
- Find out if you or your children have a genetic predisposition to RDS
- How to eliminate negative RDS behaviors; Stress, Craving, Depression or Anxiety
Hot Topics in Reward Deficiency Syndrome (RDS)
The Official Journal of Institute of Integrative Omics and Applied Biotechnology (IIOAB)
RDS internet sex pornography addiction and craving
RDS sex addiction, sexual craving, desire, and hormones
Behavioral Problems in Young Children, Toddlers, and Teenagers
Abnormal Behavior Examples in Children, Definition, Articles, Theories, and Disorders
Medication vs Treatment for Compulsive Behavior Disorder in Children and Toddlers (Definition and Addiction Symptoms)
Definition of Erratic Behavior Disorder in Children
Gambling Addict Addiction Stories, Facts, Treatment Centers, Articles and Hotline
I need to know how to find ways to Overcome or Quit Gambling Addiction For Good Tips Hypnosis Hotline
What is and what causes Adrenaline Addiction, Symptoms, Treatment, Wiki, Health, Anxiety, and Reckless Behavior in Adolescence
How to Promote and Improve Well-Being, Well Being, Index, Picture Scale, Therapy, Journal, Five Essential Elements, and Yoga Miami
Healthy Brain, Body, Food, Diet, Tips, Function, Initiative, Life, MRI, Snacks, Book
How Supplements, Herbs, and Foods Enhance Brain Function, Power, and Memory
Improve Brain Function, Power, Performance, Memory, Processing Speed, Supplement, Health, Activity, and Functioning
Improve Memory and Concentration Supplements, Techniques, Vitamins, Retention, Exercises, and Skills
Improve Focus, Memory, and Attention in Children (for Kids)
States How to Increase Mental Awareness Month, Day, Week, Test
Government starts to take control over pseudo-legal medical marijuana industry
How to, Ways to, or Activities to Improve and Promote Wellness
How to,Ways to,Foods that,Supplements that, or Vitamins that Increase,Improve, or Boost Energy Levels Naturally without Caffeine,Diet
Stress Reduction Tips, Exercises, Activities, Strategies, Clinic, Games, Kit, Programs, and Techniques at Work
Reduce Stress and Anxiety Naturally at Work Tips; Exercise in the Workplace, Your Life, and Hormones
Eliminate or Reduce Anxiety Attacks Naturally, Techniques, Symptoms, Without Medication, Public Speaking, in Children, at Work, Stress
Improve Sleep Quality: Habits, Patterns, Hygiene, Efficiency, Cycle, Sleeping Patterns, Sleep Better at Night
Sleep Deprivation: Effects, Treatment, Cure, Depression, Studies, and Sleep Better at Night
Sleep Disorders: Symptoms, Treatment in Children, Toddlers, and Sleep Better at Night
Lose Weight: Fast and Safe, Quickly, in a Week, 2 Weeks, 3 Days, Quick, and Without Exercise or Diet
Weight Loss: Tips, Calculator, Pills, Programs, Supplements, Foods, Success Stories, Plateau, and Diet
Overweight and Obesity: Calculator, Chart, in Children, Help
Decrease Body Fat: Percentage, Quickly, Increase Muscle, Diet, Fat Burning Foods, Smash Diet
How to Lose and Get Rid of: Chubby Stomach, Legs, Thighs, Arms, Chub, Chubbiness
Control Weight: Gain, During Menopause, Columbia, Curling, Lasting, Loss, Portion, How to, and How Does Exercise
Maintain Healthy: Weight, Immune System, Lifestyle, Diet, How to, Ways to, Calories to, and Best Way
Burn a Pound or Pounds: Fat, Day, How Many Calories, Burned
|
|
|
Dr. Blum and Dr. Waite advocated a non-specific "healthy diet" and non-specific regular exercise to accompany a regimen of taking Synaptose
TM
, the nutrigenomic neuroadaptogen they developed based on Dr. Blum's many years of research to increase the endogenous production of Dopamine and reduce negative Reward Deficiency Syndrome behaviors. The scientific evidence they have thus far accumulated, they say, demonstrates that Synaptose
TM
changes the plasticity of the brain synapses while balancing the endogenous neurotransmitters, positively affecting the Brain Reward Cascade.
