title: Altered Episodic Memory in Introverted Young Adults Carrying the BDNFMetAllele.
abstract: While most studies have been interested in the distinct, predisposing roles of the common BDNF Val66Met variant and extraversion personality traits on episodic memory, very few studies have looked at the synergistic effects of genetic and personality factors to account for cognitive variance. This is surprising considering recent reports challenging the long-held belief that the BDNFMetvariant negatively impacts cognitive function. A total of 75 young healthy adults (26 of them carried at least one copy of the BDNFMetallele) took part in this study consisting of genetic profiling from saliva, personality assessment using the Revised NEO Personality Inventory (NEO PI-R) and a short battery of neuropsychological tests. An ANOVA revealed that BDNFMetcarriers were significantly less extraverted than BDNFValcarriers (F1,73= 9.54;p< 0.01; ηp² = 0.126). Moreover, extraversion was found to significantly moderate the relationship between the BDNF genotype and episodic memory performance (p= 0.03). Subsequent correlational analyses yielded a strong and significant correlation (r= 0.542;p< 0.005) between introversion and delayed episodic memory specific to BDNFMetindividuals. The present study suggests that introversion and the BDNFMetvariant synergistically interact to reduce episodic memory performance in healthy, young adults. These findings reaffirm that a more accurate explanation of cognitive variance can be achieved by looking at the synergistic effects of genotype and phenotype factors.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Quebec at Trois-Rivieres, 3351 Boulevard des Forges, Trois-Rivières, QC G9A 5H7, Canada. andreanne.bombardier@uqtr.ca.
authors.forename: Andreanne
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bombardier
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Montreal, 2900 Boulevard Edouard-Montpetit, Montréal, QC H3T 1J4, Canada. maude.beauchemin@umontreal.ca.
authors.forename: Maude
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Beauchemin
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Montreal, 2900 Boulevard Edouard-Montpetit, Montréal, QC H3T 1J4, Canada. nadia.gosselin@umontreal.ca.|Montreal Sacred Heart Hospital Research Centre, Montreal, QC H4J 1C5, Canada. nadia.gosselin@umontreal.ca.
authors.forename: Nadia
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Gosselin
authors.affiliation: Douglas Mental Health University Institute, 6875 Boulevard LaSalle, Verdun, QC H4H 1R3, Canada. judes.poirier@mcgill.ca.
authors.forename: Judes
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Poirier
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, University of Quebec at Trois-Rivieres, 3351 Boulevard des Forges, Trois-Rivières, QC G9A 5H7, Canada. louis.de.beaumont@umontreal.ca.|Montreal Sacred Heart Hospital Research Centre, Montreal, QC H4J 1C5, Canada. louis.de.beaumont@umontreal.ca.
authors.forename: Louis
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: De Beaumont
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000483:Alleles; D019208:Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor / Q000235:genetics*; D005260:Female; D056726:Genetic Association Studies; D006801:Humans; D007439:Introversion, Psychological; D008297:Male; D061212:Memory, Episodic; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D019208:Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor; C579455:BDNF protein, human
keywords: brain-derived neurotrophic factor; memory; personality trait