Scientists have identified a particular variant of a gene that plays spoiltsport in people's recovery from alcoholism, besides subjecting them to 10 times higher risk of premature death.

"Our research shows that alcohol-dependent individuals, who are also carriers of this gene variant, run 10 times the risk of dying prematurely, compared with the average population," says study co-author Claudia Fahlke, from Sweden's Sahlgrenska Academy.