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A functional polymorphism in the COMT gene and performance on a test of prefrontal cognition
Anil K Malhotra1, Lisa J Kestler, Chiara Mazzanti
1Unit of Molecular Psychiatry, Hillside Hospital, Glen Oaks, NY 11004, USA. malhotra@lij.edu
Objective:
In the prefrontal cortex, the enzyme catechol O-methyltransferase (COMT) is critical in the metabolic degradation of dopamine, a neurotransmitter hypothesized to influence human cognitive function. The COMT gene contains a functional polymorphism, Val158Met, that exerts a fourfold effect on enzyme activity. The current study investigated whether prefrontal cognition varies with COMT genotype.
Method:
Val158Met was genotyped in 73 healthy volunteers. A task of prefrontal cognition, the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test, was also administered.
Results:
Subjects with only the low-activity met allele made significantly fewer perseverative errors on the Wisconsin Card Sorting Test than did subjects with the val allele.
Conclusions:
These data are consistent with those of previous studies, suggesting that a functional genetic polymorphism may influence prefrontal cognition.