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Serotonin transporter polymorphism and harm avoidance personality in chronic tension-type headache
Jeong Wook Park1, Joong Seok Kim, Hae Kook Lee
1Department of Neurology, Catholic University of Korea, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
Headache
|November 18, 2004
Summary
Genetic variations in the 5-HTT-gene-linked polymorphic region (5-HTTLPR) and higher harm avoidance scores are linked to chronic tension-type headache (CTH), suggesting serotonin
Area of Science:
- Neurogenetics
- Psychiatry
- Headache Medicine
Background:
- Serotonin transporter (5-HTT) regulates synaptic serotonergic neurotransmission.
- The 5-HTT-gene-linked polymorphic region (5-HTTLPR) exhibits allelic variations (short/long) affecting gene expression.
- Harm avoidance (HA) is a heritable personality trait potentially linked to serotonin activity.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the association between 5-HTTLPR genotypes and the harm avoidance (HA) dimension in individuals with chronic tension-type headache (CTH).
Main Methods:
- Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was used to amplify and analyze 5-HTTLPR genotypes.
- The Tridimensional Personality Questionnaire (TPQ) assessed HA scores in 107 CTH patients and 100 healthy controls.
Main Results:
- A higher frequency of the short allele and the S/S genotype was observed in CTH patients compared to controls (76% vs 59%, P=.02).
- Patients with CTH exhibited significantly higher HA scores (21.4±6.3) than healthy controls (16.3±6.1).
Conclusions:
- Serotonergic activity may play a role in the pathogenesis of CTH.
- The 5-HTTLPR genetic polymorphism is a potential contributing factor in the development of CTH.