Based on research by Dr. Jessica E. Salvatore, NJ.com published an article about how high school students’ genes can influence how likely their peers are to abuse drugs or alcohol or be depressed or anxious. The research is part of the relatively new field of socio-genetics, which looks at the influences of inherited traits on others.
Associate Professor Jessica E. Salvatore and four co-authors dove into a comprehensive database of more than 655,000 people in Sweden who were ages 17 to 30, plus their relatives going back to great-great-grandparents.
Dr. Salvatore is a Co-Lead in the new UM1 Element Genetically informed Research, Education, And Treatment (GREAT)