title: The dopamine transporter gene may not contribute to susceptibility and the specific personality traits of amphetamine dependence.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  A substantial amount of evidence suggests that dysfunction of the dopamine transporter may be involved in the pathophysiology of amphetamine dependence (AD). The aim of this study was to examine whether the dopamine transporter gene (DAT1, SLC6A3) is associated with development of AD and whether this gene influences personality traits in patients with AD.
  
  
  METHODS
  Eighteen polymorphisms of the DAT1 gene were analyzed in a case-control study that included 909 Han Chinese men (568 patients with AD and 341 control subjects). The patients fulfilled the DSM-IV-TR criteria for AD. The Tridimensional Personality Questionnaire (TPQ) was used to assess personality traits and to examine the association between these traits and DAT1 gene variants.
  
  
  RESULTS
  A weak association was found between the rs27072 polymorphism and development of AD, but these borderline associations were unconfirmed by logistic regression and haplotype analysis. Although harm avoidance and novelty seeking scores were significantly higher in patients than in controls, DAT1 polymorphisms did not influence these scores.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study suggests that high harm avoidance and novelty seeking personality traits may be a risk factor for the development of AD. However, the DAT1 gene may not contribute to AD susceptibility and specific personality traits observed in AD among Han Chinese men.
authors: Department of Psychiatry, Tri-Service General Hospital, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC; Student Counseling Center, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC.
authors: Nian-Sheng
authors: NS
authors: Tzeng
authors: Department of Psychiatry, Institute of Behavior Medicine, College of Medicine, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan.
authors: Ru-Band
authors: RB
authors: Lu
authors: Department of Nursing, Kang-Ning Junior College of Medical Care and Management, Taipei, Taiwan; Department of Nursing, Tri-Service General Hospital, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan.
authors: Hui-Wen
authors: HW
authors: Yeh
authors: Department of Psychiatry, Tri-Service General Hospital, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC; Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC.
authors: Yi-Wei
authors: YW
authors: Yeh
authors: Department of Psychiatry, Buddhist Tzu Chi General Hospital, Taipei Branch, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC.
authors: Chang-Chih
authors: CC
authors: Huang
authors: Department of Neurology, Tri-Service General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC.
authors: Che-Hung
authors: CH
authors: Yen
authors: Department of Psychiatry, Tri-Service General Hospital, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC; Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC.
authors: Shin-Chang
authors: SC
authors: Kuo
authors: Department of Psychiatry, Tri-Service General Hospital, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC; Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC.
authors: Chun-Yen
authors: CY
authors: Chen
authors: Department of Psychiatry, Tri-Service General Hospital, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC.
authors: Hsin-An
authors: HA
authors: Chang
authors: Department of Psychiatry, Beitou Branch, Tri-Service General Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC.
authors: Pei-Shen
authors: PS
authors: Ho
authors: College of Arts and Sciences, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, USA.
authors: Serena
authors: S
authors: Cheng
authors: Department of Psychiatry, Tri-Service General Hospital, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC.
authors: Mei-Chen
authors: MC
authors: Shih
authors: Department of Psychiatry, Tri-Service General Hospital, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC; Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences, National Defense Medical Center, Taipei, Taiwan, ROC. Electronic address: hsy@mail.ndmctsgh.edu.tw.
authors: San-Yuan
authors: SY
authors: Huang
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D019969:Amphetamine-Related Disorders / Q000235:genetics* / Q000523:psychology*; D044466:Asian People; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D039721:Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders; D050483:Dopamine Plasma Membrane Transport Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D005106:Exploratory Behavior; D014644:Genetic Variation; D005838:Genotype; D006239:Haplotypes; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010551:Personality / Q000235:genetics*; D010556:Personality Tests; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide
chemical_list: D050483:Dopamine Plasma Membrane Transport Proteins
keywords: Amphetamine dependence; Chinese men; DAT1 gene; Personality trait