title: Association between monoamine oxidase A polymorphisms and anger-related personality traits in Korean women.
abstract: It has been suggested that polymorphisms in the monoamine oxidase A (MAO-A) gene are associated with aggressive and impulsive behaviors. In the present study, we investigated the association of the MAO-A variable number of tandem repeat polymorphism in the promoter region (MAO-A uVNTR) with anger-related personality traits. Specifically, MAO-A uVNTR polymorphisms were examined for associations with the State-Trait Anger Expression Inventory (STAXI) scores in 211 normal Korean women. All subjects were assessed using the STAXI and genotyped for MAO-A uVNTR status. The scores on the STAXI subscales differed significantly among the MAO-A uVNTR polymorphism genotypes in terms of anger expression-out (AX-Out) scores. Post hoc comparisons revealed significant differences between the 3/3 and 4/4, and between 3/4 and 4/4 polymorphisms. However, no significant difference was observed in other STAXI subscale scores among these genotypes. Subjects with the high-activity MAO-A uVNTR had significantly higher AX-Out scores than subjects with other genotypes. MAO-A uVNTR polymorphisms may contribute in part to the expression of anger. These findings support the hypothesis that this polymorphism in the MAO-A gene may be associated with anger-related personality traits in Korean women.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Korean University, Seoul, South Korea.
authors.forename: Jae-Won
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Yang
authors.forename: So-Hee
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Seung-Ho
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Ryu
authors.forename: Boung-Chul
authors.initials: BC
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Seung-Hyun
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.forename: Sook-Haeng
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Joe
authors.forename: In-Kwa
authors.initials: IK
authors.lastname: Jung
authors.forename: Ihn-Geun
authors.initials: IG
authors.lastname: Choi
authors.forename: Byung-Joo
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Ham
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000786:Anger; D044466:Asian People / Q000235:genetics*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007723:Korea; D008297:Male; D008995:Monoamine Oxidase / Q000235:genetics*; D010554:Personality Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000235:genetics*; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic / Q000235:genetics*; D012737:Sex Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
chemical_list: D008995:Monoamine Oxidase