title: Association between the catechol O-methyltransferase Val108/158Met polymorphism and alexithymia.
abstract: It has been suggested that the characteristics of alexithymia result from deficits in frontal lobe functioning, and the prefrontal cortex is particularly dependent on the catechol O-methyltransferase (COMT) pathway. We investigated the relationship between COMT Val108/158Met, serotonin transporter coding sequence (5-HT transporter gene-linked polymorphic region; 5-HTTLPR) polymorphisms, and alexithymia. The study sample comprised 109 students at the Korea University. All participants were tested using the 20-item Toronto Alexithymia Scale (TAS-20). They were genotyped for COMT Val108/158Met and 5-HTTLPR polymorphisms. Genotyping was analyzed using polymerase chain reaction. Subjects with Val/Val genotype had significantly higher TAS-20 scores than those with Met/Met or Met/Val genotypes. However, there was no significant relationship between the 5-HTTLPR genotype and TAS-20 scores. This indicates a possible association between the COMT Val108/158Met gene polymorphism and alexithymia.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuropsychiatry, Hangang Sacred Heart Hospital, Hallym University Medical Center, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Byung-Joo
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Ham
authors.forename: Min-Soo
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Young-Mee
authors.initials: YM
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Meyoung-Kon
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Myoung-Jin
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Choi
authors.forename: Kang-Seob
authors.initials: KS
authors.lastname: Oh
authors.forename: Han Yong
authors.initials: HY
authors.lastname: Jung
authors.forename: In Kyoon
authors.initials: IK
authors.lastname: Lyoo
authors.forename: Ihn-Geun
authors.initials: IG
authors.lastname: Choi
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000342:Affective Symptoms / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000235:genetics*; D019943:Amino Acid Substitution; D002394:Catechol O-Methyltransferase / Q000235:genetics*; D005260:Female; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008562:Membrane Glycoproteins / Q000235:genetics; D026901:Membrane Transport Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic / Q000235:genetics*; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D050486:Serotonin Plasma Membrane Transport Proteins
chemical_list: D008562:Membrane Glycoproteins; D026901:Membrane Transport Proteins; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins; C493230:SLC6A4 protein, human; D050486:Serotonin Plasma Membrane Transport Proteins; D002394:Catechol O-Methyltransferase