title: Preliminary investigation of the influence of dopamine regulating genes on social working memory.
abstract: Working memory (WM) refers to mental processes that enable temporary retention and manipulation of information, including information about other people ("social working memory"). Previous studies have demonstrated that nonsocial WM is supported by dopamine neurotransmission. Here, we investigated in 131 healthy adults whether dopamine is similarly involved in social WM by testing whether social and nonsocial WM are influenced by genetic variants in three genes coding for molecules regulating the availability of dopamine in the brain: catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT), dopamine active transporter (DAT), and monoamine-oxidase A (MAOA). An advantage for the Met allele of COMT was observed in the two standard WM tasks and in the social WM task. However, the influence of COMT on social WM performance was not accounted for by its influence on either standard WM paradigms. There was no main effect of DAT1 or MAOA, but a significant COMT x DAT1 interaction on social WM performance. This study provides novel preliminary evidence of effects of genetic variants of the dopamine neurotransmitter system on social cognition. The results further suggest that the effects observed on standard WM do not explain the genetic effects on effortful social cognition.
authors.affiliation: a Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience , University College London , London , UK.
authors.forename: Iroise
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Dumontheil
authors.forename: Sarah K G
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Jensen
authors.forename: Nicholas W
authors.initials: NW
authors.lastname: Wood
authors.forename: Meghan L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Meyer
authors.forename: Matthew D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Lieberman
authors.forename: Sarah-Jayne
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Blakemore
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D002394:Catechol O-Methyltransferase / Q000235:genetics*; D050483:Dopamine Plasma Membrane Transport Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D005260:Female; D014644:Genetic Variation; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008570:Memory, Short-Term; D008995:Monoamine Oxidase / Q000235:genetics*; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D012938:Social Perception
chemical_list: D050483:Dopamine Plasma Membrane Transport Proteins; C493214:SLC6A3 protein, human; D008995:Monoamine Oxidase; C579458:monoamine oxidase A, human; C588010:COMT protein, human; D002394:Catechol O-Methyltransferase
keywords: COMT; Dopamine; Executive functions; Social cognition; Working memory