COMT gene polymorphism is associated with declarative memory in adulthood and old age
COMT gene polymorphism is associated with declarative memory in adulthood and old age
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DOI：
10.1023/b:bege.0000038491.06972.8c
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发表时间：
2004-09-01
影响因子：
2.6
通讯作者：
Nilsson, LG
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
de Frias, CM;Annerbrink, K;Nilsson, LG
记忆能力的差异在很大程度上是由基因来解释的。在前额叶皮质，儿茶酚O-甲基转移酶(COMT)基因在多巴胺的代谢降解过程中是必不可少的，多巴胺是一种与认知功能有关的神经递质。本研究考察了COMT基因的多态对成年和老年个体差异和记忆变化的影响。从人群中随机抽样(即Betula前瞻性队列研究)的286名男性(最初年龄在35-85岁)在两个场合接受了评估情景记忆和语义记忆的测试，时间跨度为5年。与Val等位基因携带者(酶活性较高)相比，Met/Met基因携带者(酶活性较低)在情景记忆和语义记忆方面表现更好。将情景记忆分成回忆和再认两部分，结果表明，这种差异是针对情景回忆的，而不是再认任务；这一效果在三个年龄组(中年、青年和老年人)和五年的时间内都观察到了。COMT基因可能是影响成年和老年记忆功能的候选基因。
Variation in memory performance is to a large extent explained by genes. In the prefrontal cortex, the catechol O-methyltransferase (COMT) gene is essential in the metabolic degradation of dopamine, a neurotransmitter implicated in cognitive functions. The present study examined the effect of a polymorphism in the COMT gene on individual differences and changes in memory in adulthood and old age. Tests assessing episodic and semantic memory were administered to 286 men (initially aged 35-85 years) from a random sample of the population (i.e., the Betula prospective cohort study) at two occasions followed over a 5-year period. Carriers of the Met/Met genotype (with low enzyme activity) performed better on episodic and semantic memory, as compared to carriers of the Val allele (with higher enzyme activity). Division of episodic memory into its recall and recognition components showed that the difference was specific to episodic recall, not recognition tasks; an effect that was observed across three age groups (middle-age, young-old, and old-old adults) and over a 5-year period. The COMT gene is a plausible candidate gene for memory functioning in adulthood and old age.