title: Association of DRD4 polymorphism with severity of oppositional defiant disorder, separation anxiety disorder and repetitive behaviors in children with autism spectrum disorder.
abstract: The objective was to examine whether a common polymorphism in the dopamine D4 receptor gene (DRD4) might be a potential biomarker for behavioral variation within the autism spectrum disorder clinical phenotype. Children (N=66) were evaluated with a validated mother- and teacher-completed DSM-IV-referenced rating scale. Partial eta-squared (ηp(2) ) was used to gauge the magnitude of group differences: 0.01-0.06=small, 0.06-0.14=moderate and >0.14=large. Children who were 7-repeat allele carriers had more severe oppositional defiant disorder behaviors according to mothers' (ηp(2)=0.10) and teachers' (ηp(2)=0.06) ratings than noncarriers, but the latter was marginally significant (P=0.07). Children who were 7-repeat allele carriers also obtained more severe maternal ratings of tics (ηp(2)=0.07) and obsessions-compulsions (ηp(2)=0.08). Findings for maternal ratings of separation anxiety were marginally significant (P=0.08, ηp(2) =0.05). Analyses of combined DRD4 and dopamine transporter gene (DAT1) genotypes approached significance (P=0.05) for teachers' ratings of oppositional behavior and mothers' ratings of tics. DRD4 allelic variation may be a prognostic biomarker for challenging behaviors in children with autism spectrum disorder, but these exploratory findings remain tentative pending replication with larger independent samples.
authors: Department of Psychiatry, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY, USA. kenneth.gadow@stonybrook.edu
authors: Kenneth D
authors: KD
authors: Gadow
authors: Carla J
authors: CJ
authors: Devincent
authors: Doreen M
authors: DM
authors: Olvet
authors: Victoria
authors: V
authors: Pisarevskaya
authors: Eli
authors: E
authors: Hatchwell
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000483:Alleles; D001010:Anxiety, Separation / Q000235:genetics* / Q000523:psychology; D019958:Attention Deficit and Disruptive Behavior Disorders / Q000235:genetics* / Q000523:psychology; D002648:Child; D002659:Child Development Disorders, Pervasive / Q000235:genetics* / Q000523:psychology; D002675:Child, Preschool; D005260:Female; D056726:Genetic Association Studies / Q000379:methods; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic / Q000235:genetics; D050638:Receptors, Dopamine D4 / Q000235:genetics*; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013981:Tic Disorders / Q000235:genetics* / Q000523:psychology
chemical_list: D050638:Receptors, Dopamine D4