Platelet serotonin level and its correlation with finger length relation.
BACKGROUND
Serotonin is one of the neurotransmitters implicated in normal personality. Many psychobiological models of personality include some dimensions related to serotonin. Moreover, platelets have long been proposed as easily obtainable, neurological models of serotonergic neurons.


OBJECTIVE
This study was done to examine whether measurement for platelet serotonin could aid as a marker for increased neuroticism trait amongst (arbitrarily named Group C) males and females having the tip of the little fingers below the distal finger mark on the adjacent ring fingers in both their outstretched hands compared to (arbitrarily named Group A) the males and females who have the tip of the little fingers above the distal finger mark on the adjacent ring fingers in both their outstretched hands.


METHODS
Platelet serotonin estimation was done by Elisa Method (LDN, Germany Kit) from randomly selected 48 healthy subjects [24 males (12 males belonging to Group A and 12 belonging to Group C) and 24 females (12 females belonging to group A and 12 females belonging to Group C)].


RESULTS
PRELIMINARY RESULTS SHOWED THAT THE PLATELET SEROTONIN LEVELS WERE SIGNIFICANTLY LOWER (LEVEL OF SIGNIFICANCE: 0.05 in t-Test analysis) in Group C males compared to those observed in Group A males and the platelet serotonin levels were also significantly lower (level of significance: 0.05 in t-Test analysis) in Group C females compared to those observed in Group A females.


CONCLUSIONS
Thus, it may be inferred that the platelet serotonin may be used as a biochemical marker for increased neuroticism trait in Group C subjects.
Ghosh
Devasis
D
Department of Psychiatry, Rehmatbai Hospital, 82A Raja Ram Mohan Roy Road, Kolkata - 700 082, India.