Predicting childhood effortful control from interactions between early parenting quality and children's dopamine transporter gene haplotypes.
Children's observed effortful control (EC) at 30, 42, and 54 months (n = 145) was predicted from the interaction between mothers' observed parenting with their 30-month-olds and three variants of the solute carrier family C6, member 3 (SLC6A3) dopamine transporter gene (single nucleotide polymorphisms in intron8 and intron13, and a 40 base pair variable number tandem repeat [VNTR] in the 3'-untranslated region [UTR]), as well as haplotypes of these variants. Significant moderating effects were found. Children without the intron8-A/intron13-G, intron8-A/3'-UTR VNTR-10, or intron13-G/3'-UTR VNTR-10 haplotypes (i.e., haplotypes associated with the reduced SLC6A3 gene expression and thus lower dopamine functioning) appeared to demonstrate altered levels of EC as a function of maternal parenting quality, whereas children with these haplotypes demonstrated a similar EC level regardless of the parenting quality. Children with these haplotypes demonstrated a trade-off, such that they showed higher EC, relative to their counterparts without these haplotypes, when exposed to less supportive maternal parenting. The findings revealed a diathesis-stress pattern and suggested that different SLC6A3 haplotypes, but not single variants, might represent different levels of young children's sensitivity/responsivity to early parenting.
Arizona State University.
Yi
Y
Li
Arizona State University.
Michael J
MJ
Sulik
Arizona State University.
Nancy
N
Eisenberg
Arizona State University.
Tracy L
TL
Spinrad
Arizona State University.
Kathryn
K
Lemery-Chalfant
Arizona State University.
Daryn A
DA
Stover
Virginia Commonwealth University.
Brian C
BC
Verrelli
D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004198:Disease Susceptibility; D050483:Dopamine Plasma Membrane Transport Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D056344:Executive Function; D005260:Female; D059647:Gene-Environment Interaction; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D006239:Haplotypes; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D018598:Minisatellite Repeats; D009035:Mothers; D016487:Parenting / Q000523:psychology*; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; D000068356:Self-Control / Q000523:psychology*
D050483:Dopamine Plasma Membrane Transport Proteins; C493214:SLC6A3 protein, human