Psychiatry Investig.
2015 Jul;12(3):381-387. 10.4306/pi.2015.12.3.381.
Analysis of Association between Norepinephrine Transporter Gene Polymorphisms and Personality Traits of NEO-FFI in a Japanese Population
- Affiliations
-
- 1Laboratory of Neurophysiology, Graduate School of Environmental Health Sciences, Azabu University, Kanagawa, Japan. iwahashi@azabu-u.ac.jp
- 2Health Administration Center, Azabu University, Kanagawa, Japan.
- 3Department of Neuropsychiatry, Tokyo Women's Medical University, Tokyo, Japan.
- 4Laboratory of Effective Animals for Human Health, Azabu University, Kanagawa, Japan.
- KMID: 2316500
- DOI: http://doi.org/10.4306/pi.2015.12.3.381
Abstract
OBJECTIVE
Norepinephrine is an important chemical messenger that is involved in mood and stress in humans, and is reabsorbed by the norepinephrine transporter (NET). According to Cloninger's theory, the noradrenergic system mediates the personality trait of reward dependence. Thus far, although association studies on NET gene polymorphisms and Cloninger's personality traits have been reported, they yielded inconsistent results. Therefore, in the present study we investigated whether or not the 1287G/A, -182T/C and -3081A/T polymorphisms of the NET gene (SLC6A2) are associated with reward dependence-related traits, as assessed by the five-factor model.
METHODS
After written informed consent was obtained from participants, the three NET gene polymorphisms were analyzed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP), and personality was assessed by the Neuroticism Extraversion Openness-Five Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI) in 270 Japanese university students.
RESULTS
A significant relation was found between the -3081A/T functional promoter polymorphism and NEO-FFI scores: those with the T allele exhibited a lower extraversion (E) score than those without the T allele (Mann-Whitney U-test: z=-3.861, p<0.001). However, there was no correlation between the other NET gene polymorphisms and E score, and no association with other dimensions and these three polymorphisms.
CONCLUSION
We conclude that the -3081A/T functional polymorphism in the NET gene may affect the extraversion of reward dependence-related traits, as measured by NEO-FFI. However, we used only the shortened version of NEO-PI-R in this study. Further investigations are necessary using the full version of self-rating personality questionnaires.
- Full Text Links
-
- Actions
-
Cited
- CITED
-
- Close
- Share
-
- Similar articles
-
- Lack of Association between Polymorphisms of the Dopamine Receptor D4 and Dopamine Transporter Genes and Personality Traits in a Korean Population
- Trends and Directions in Personality Genetic Studies
- Association Study between Norepinephrine Transporter Gene Polymorphism and Schizophrenia in a Korean Population
- Association of the Neuronal Cell Adhesion Molecule (NrCAM) Gene Variants with Personality Traits and Addictive Symptoms in Methamphetamine Use Disorder
- Serotonin Transporter-Linked Promoter Region Polymorphism and Personality Traits in a Korean Female Population
