Kamila Kotowicz1, Dorota Frydecka1, Łukasz Gawęda2, Katarzyna Prochwicz3, Joanna Kłosowska3, Joanna Rymaszewska1, Agnieszka Samochowiec4, Jerzy Samochowiec5, Krzysztof Szczygieł5, Edyta Pawlak-Adamska6, Elżbieta Szmida7, Andrzej Cechnicki8, Błażej Misiak7. 1. Department of Psychiatry, Wroclaw Medical University, Wroclaw, Poland. 2. Experimental Psychopathology Lab, Institute of Psychology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Warsaw, Poland. 3. Institute of Psychology, Jagiellonian University, Krakow, Poland. 4. Institute of Psychology, Department of Clinical Psychology, University of Szczecin, Szczecin, Poland. 5. Department of Psychiatry, Pomeranian Medical University, Szczecin, Poland. 6. Department of Experimental Therapy, Laboratory of Immunopathology, Institute of Immunology and Experimental Therapy, Polish Academy of Sciences, Wroclaw, Poland. 7. Department of Genetics, Wroclaw Medical University, Wroclaw, Poland. 8. Department of Community Psychiatry, Jagiellonian University Medical College, Cracow, Poland.
Abstract
AIMS: Recent studies have provided evidence that interactions between variation in dopaminergic genes and stressful experiences might impact risk of psychosis. However, it remains unknown whether these interactions impact the development of subclinical symptoms, including psychotic-like experiences (PLEs). In this study, we aimed to test the effects of interactions between variation in dopaminergic genes and traumatic life events (TLEs) on a severity of PLEs. METHODS: We assessed TLEs, cognitive biases, PLEs as well as the catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) rs4680 and the dopamine D2 receptor (DRD2) rs6277 gene polymorphisms in 445 university students at three urban areas. RESULTS: There was a significant effect of the interaction between the COMT rs4680 and a history of any type of TLEs on a severity of PLEs. Among the COMT rs4680 Met allele carriers, a severity of PLEs was higher in individuals with a history of any type of TLEs. Further stratification of the sample revealed that this effect appears only in the group of participants with a high level of cognitive biases. The DRD2 rs6277 C allele was independently associated with a higher level of PLEs. CONCLUSIONS: Our results indicate that decreased dopamine catabolism related to the COMT gene polymorphism might increase psychosis proneness in individuals with a history of TLEs and high levels of cognitive biases. Variation in the DRD2 gene might exert independent effects on psychosis proneness. These findings imply that there are various levels of complexity in the models of interactions between genetic and environmental factors explaining the mechanisms underlying psychosis proneness.
AIMS: Recent studies have provided evidence that interactions between variation in dopaminergic genes and stressful experiences might impact risk of psychosis. However, it remains unknown whether these interactions impact the development of subclinical symptoms, including psychotic-like experiences (PLEs). In this study, we aimed to test the effects of interactions between variation in dopaminergic genes and traumatic life events (TLEs) on a severity of PLEs. METHODS: We assessed TLEs, cognitive biases, PLEs as well as the catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) rs4680 and the dopamine D2 receptor (DRD2) rs6277 gene polymorphisms in 445 university students at three urban areas. RESULTS: There was a significant effect of the interaction between the COMT rs4680 and a history of any type of TLEs on a severity of PLEs. Among the COMT rs4680 Met allele carriers, a severity of PLEs was higher in individuals with a history of any type of TLEs. Further stratification of the sample revealed that this effect appears only in the group of participants with a high level of cognitive biases. The DRD2 rs6277 C allele was independently associated with a higher level of PLEs. CONCLUSIONS: Our results indicate that decreased dopamine catabolism related to the COMT gene polymorphism might increase psychosis proneness in individuals with a history of TLEs and high levels of cognitive biases. Variation in the DRD2 gene might exert independent effects on psychosis proneness. These findings imply that there are various levels of complexity in the models of interactions between genetic and environmental factors explaining the mechanisms underlying psychosis proneness.
Authors: Stephanie Beards; Helen L Fisher; Charlotte Gayer-Anderson; Kathryn Hubbard; Ulrich Reininghaus; Thomas J Craig; Marta Di Forti; Valeria Mondelli; Carmine Pariante; Paola Dazzan; Robin Murray; Craig Morgan Journal: Schizophr Bull Date: 2020-07-08 Impact factor: 7.348
Authors: Filip Stramecki; Błażej Misiak; Łukasz Gawęda; Katarzyna Prochwicz; Joanna Kłosowska; Jerzy Samochowiec; Agnieszka Samochowiec; Edyta Pawlak; Elżbieta Szmida; Paweł Skiba; Andrzej Cechnicki; Dorota Frydecka Journal: J Clin Med Date: 2022-03-15 Impact factor: 4.241