title: MAOA genotype, childhood maltreatment, and their interaction in the etiology of adult antisocial behaviors.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Maltreatment by an adult or caregiver during childhood is a prevalent and important predictor of antisocial behaviors in adulthood. A functional promoter polymorphism in the monoamine oxidase A (MAOA) gene has been implicated as a moderating factor in the relationship between childhood maltreatment and antisocial behaviors. Although there have been numerous attempts at replicating this observation, results remain inconclusive.
  
  
  METHODS
  We examined this gene-environment interaction hypothesis in a sample of 3356 white and 960 black men (aged 24-34) participating in the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Primary analysis indicated that childhood maltreatment was a significant risk factor for later behaviors that violate rules and the rights of others (p < .05), there were no main effects of MAOA genotype, and MAOA genotype was not a significant moderator of the relationship between maltreatment and antisocial behaviors in our white sample. Post hoc analyses identified a similar pattern of results among our black sample in which maltreatment was not a significant predictor of antisocial behavior. Post hoc analyses also revealed a main effect of MAOA genotype on having a disposition toward violence in both samples and for violent convictions among our black sample. None of these post hoc findings, however, survived correction for multiple testing (p > .05). Power analyses indicated that these results were not due to insufficient statistical power.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We could not confirm the hypothesis that MAOA genotype moderates the relationship between childhood maltreatment and adult antisocial behaviors.
authors.affiliation: Institute for Behavioral Genetics, University of Colorado at Boulder, Boulder. Electronic address: Brett.Haberstick@Colorado.edu.
authors.forename: Brett C
authors.initials: BC
authors.lastname: Haberstick
authors.forename: Jeffrey M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Lessem
authors.forename: John K
authors.initials: JK
authors.lastname: Hewitt
authors.forename: Andrew
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Smolen
authors.forename: Christian J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Hopfer
authors.forename: Carolyn T
authors.initials: CT
authors.lastname: Halpern
authors.forename: Ley A
authors.initials: LA
authors.lastname: Killeya-Jones
authors.forename: Jason D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Boardman
authors.forename: Joyce
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Tabor
authors.forename: Ilene C
authors.initials: IC
authors.lastname: Siegler
authors.forename: Redford B
authors.initials: RB
authors.lastname: Williams
authors.forename: Kathleen
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Mullan Harris
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American; D000987:Antisocial Personality Disorder / Q000208:ethnology / Q000209:etiology / Q000235:genetics; D002648:Child; D002649:Child Abuse / Q000523:psychology*; D059647:Gene-Environment Interaction; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease / Q000235:genetics*; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008995:Monoamine Oxidase / Q000235:genetics*; D044465:White People
chemical_list: D008995:Monoamine Oxidase
keywords: Add Health; MAOA; antisocial behavior; depression; gene–environment interaction; maltreatment