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Association of the s allele of the 5-HTTLPR with neuroticism-related traits and temperaments in a psychiatrically healthy population

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Abstract

Introduction

Research concerning the genetic background of traits, temperaments and psychiatric disorders has been rapidly expanding. One of the most frequently studied genetic polymorphisms in the background of psychological and psychiatric phenomena is the 5-HTTLPR polymorphism of the serotonin transporter gene which has earlier been found to be associated with neuroticism and neuroticism-related traits and disorders. However, both the neuroticism trait and psychiatric disorders are complex and composed of several subfacets. The aim of our study was to investigate the association of the 5-HTTLPR polymorphism with several smaller, distinct and better characterisable phenomena related to the neuroticism trait.

Methods

169 healthy females participated in the study. All participants completed the Buss–Durkee Hostility Inventory (BDHI), the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), The Zung Self-rating Depression Scale (ZSDS), the Beck Hopelessness Scale, the SCL-51, the Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI) and the Temperament Evaluation of Memphis, Pisa, Paris and San Diego (TEMPS-A) questionnaire. All subjects were genotyped for the 5-HTTLPR using PCR. Data were analysed with ANOVA and MANCOVA with age as a covariate.

Results

We found that the presence of the s allele was significantly associated with anxiety, depression, hopelessness, guilt, hostility, aggression, presence of neurotic symptoms, self-directedness and affective temperaments carrying a depressive component even when controlling for age.

Conclusions

Our study is the first that confirms that traits and characteristics related to neuroticism, such as increased anxiety, depression, hopelessness, somatization, feeling of guilt, hostility, aggression, lack of self-directedness and affective temperament are consistently and independently associated with the 5-HTTLPR polymorphism of the serotonin transporter gene. Our study therefore suggests that neuroticism can be considered a unified construct not only from a phenotypical but also from a genetic point of view and 5HTTLPR can be considered one component of its polygenic background. Our results thus yield further insight into the role of the 5-HTTLPR in the background of neuroticism and neuroticism-related psychiatric disorders.

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Acknowledgments

These studies were supported by the Sixth Framework Programme of the EU, LSHM-CT-2004-503474, the Ministry of Welfare Research Grant 460/2006, the Hungarian Research Fund Grants 022256/1997 and 032398/2000 and the PhD Fellowship Program of the Semmelweis University, Ministry of Culture and Education, Hungary. The authors wish to thank Sandor Rozsa and Eszter Molnár for their help and advice concerning the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Dept. of Clinical and Theoretical Mental Health, Kutvolgyi Clinical Centre, Semmelweis University, Kutvolgyi ut 4, 1125, Budapest, Hungary

    Xenia Gonda MA, MSc, PhD & Zoltan Rihmer MD, PhD, DSc

  2. Dept. of Pharmacology and Pharmacotherapy, Semmelweis University, Nagyvarad ter 4, 1089, Budapest, Hungary

    Xenia Gonda MA, MSc, PhD, Judit Lazary MD & Gyorgy Bagdy MD, PhD, DSc

  3. 3rd Dept. of Psychiatry, Aristotle University, University Hospital AHEPA, 54636, Thessaloniki, Greece

    Konstantinos N. Fountoulakis MD, PhD

  4. Neuroscience and Psychiatry Unit, School of Community Based Medicine, Faculty of Medical and Human Sciences, The University of Manchester, Manchester, UK

    Gabriella Juhasz MD, PhD

  5. Institute of Forensic Medicine, Semmelweis University, Ulloi ut 93, 1091, Budapest, Hungary

    Andras Laszik MD, PhD

  6. International Mood Center, La Jolla, CA, USA

    Hagop S. Akiskal MD

  7. Union of Depressive and Manic-depressive Association, Rennes, France

    Hagop S. Akiskal MD

  8. Dept. of Psychiatry, University of California at San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA, 92093-0603, USA

    Hagop S. Akiskal MD

  9. Group of Neuropsychopharmacology, Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary

    Gyorgy Bagdy MD, PhD, DSc

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  1. Xenia Gonda MA, MSc, PhD
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  2. Konstantinos N. Fountoulakis MD, PhD
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  3. Gabriella Juhasz MD, PhD
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  7. Hagop S. Akiskal MD
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  8. Gyorgy Bagdy MD, PhD, DSc
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Correspondence to Xenia Gonda MA, MSc, PhD.

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Gonda, X., Fountoulakis, K.N., Juhasz, G. et al. Association of the s allele of the 5-HTTLPR with neuroticism-related traits and temperaments in a psychiatrically healthy population. Eur Arch Psychiatry Clin Neurosci 259, 106–113 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00406-008-0842-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00406-008-0842-7

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