title: Relationships between vascular endothelial growth factor levels and temperament and character inventory traits in healthy Japanese subjects.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Personality traits and vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) levels are both independently correlated with major depressive disorder and depressive mood. However, no studies have reported associations between personality traits and VEGF levels. Thus, we hypothesized that there is a correlation between the results of the Temperament and Character Inventory (TCI) and VEGF levels.
  
  
  METHODS
  We investigated 179 healthy participants who completed the TCI. We collected a serum sample from each subject and measured each participant's VEGF level by an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). Simple and multiple regression analyses were performed to examine the correlations between the scores on the seven TCI dimensions and several other factors, including gender, age and VEGF level.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A total of 150 subjects completed the examination. Among the dimensions of the TCI, the harm avoidance (HA) scores were negatively correlated with VEGF levels, but there were no significant correlations between the scores for any other dimensions and VEGF levels. The HA score was significantly correlated with sex, age and VEGF level, and single and multiple regression analyses yielded the same results.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  VEGF may be associated with certain personality factors. This study is the first to demonstrate a direct association between VEGF levels and a dimension of the TCI in healthy subjects.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuropsychiatry, Graduate School of Medicine, Hirosaki University, Hirosaki, Japan.
authors.forename: Tetsu
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Tomita
authors.forename: Norio
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Yasui-Furukori
authors.forename: Shoko
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Tsuchimine
authors.forename: Ayako
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Kaneda
authors.forename: Sunao
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kaneko
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology; D044466:Asian People / Q000523:psychology*; D002605:Character; D005260:Female; D006262:Health; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010551:Personality / Q000502:physiology*; D010555:Personality Inventory; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D013694:Temperament / Q000502:physiology*; D042461:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A / Q000097:blood* / Q000502:physiology*; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D042461:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A