title: Impulsivity, gender, and the platelet serotonin transporter in healthy subjects.
abstract: The present study explored the possible relationships between impulsivity, gender, and a peripheral serotonergic marker, the platelet serotonin (5-HT) transporter (SERT), in a group of 32 healthy subjects. The impulsivity was measured by means of the Barratt Impulsivity Scale, version 11 (BIS-11), a widely used self-report questionnaire, and the platelet SERT was evaluated by means of the specific binding of (3)H-paroxetine ((3)H-Par) to platelet membranes, according to standardized protocols. The results showed that women had a higher BIS-11 total score than men, and also higher scores of two factors of the same scale: the motor impulsivity and the cognitive complexity. The analysis of the correlations revealed that the density of the SERT proteins, as measured by the maximum binding capacity (B(max)) of (3)H-Par, was significantly and positively related to the cognitive complexity factor, but only in men. Men showed also a significant and negative correlation with the dissociation constant, Kd, of ((3)H-Par) binding, and the motor impulsivity factor. These findings suggest that women are generally more impulsive than men, but that the 5-HT system is more involved in the impulsivity of men than in that of women.
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento di Psichiatria, Neurobiologia, Farmacologia e Biotecnologie, University of Pisa, Pisa, Italy.
authors.forename: Donatella
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Marazziti
authors.forename: Stefano
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Baroni
authors.forename: Irene
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Masala
authors.forename: Francesca
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Golia
authors.forename: Giorgio
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Consoli
authors.forename: Gabriele
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Massimetti
authors.forename: Michela
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Picchetti
authors.forename: Mario
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Catena Dell'osso
authors.forename: Gino
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Giannaccini
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Betti
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Lucacchini
authors.forename: Antonio
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Ciapparelli