Munafò Marcus R, Clark Taane G, Roberts Kate H, Johnstone Elaine C
Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK.
Neuropsychobiology. 2006;53(1):1-8. doi: 10.1159/000089915. Epub 2005 Nov 24.
An association between a polymorphism in the serotonin transporter gene (5HTT-LPR) and the personality trait of neuroticism has been reported. We sought to address the question of whether trait neuroticism mediates the putative association between this polymorphism and lifetime major depression in adults drawn from the general population.
Two hundred and fifty-one participants completed the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire and an adapted version of the depression section of the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-III-R diagnosis, modified for implementation by a self-report questionnaire. A path method was applied to assess the mediator effect of neuroticism on the association between 5HTT-LPR genotype and lifetime major depression.
5HTT-LPR genotype was significantly associated with both neuroticism (p=0.02) and lifetime major depression (p=0.04), and neuroticism with lifetime major depression (p<0.001). Neuroticism accounted for 42.3% of the effect of 5HTT-LPR genotype on lifetime major depression, indicating possible mediation (p<0.001).
These results suggest that neuroticism mediates the association between 5HTT-LPR genotype and lifetime major depression, consistent with models of the aetiology of depression which suggest that anxiety-related personality traits represent a substantial risk factor for affective disorder.
血清素转运体基因（5HTT-LPR）多态性与神经质人格特质之间的关联已有报道。我们试图探讨在从普通人群中抽取的成年人中，特质神经质是否介导了这种多态性与终生重度抑郁症之间的假定关联。
251名参与者完成了艾森克人格问卷以及一份针对DSM-III-R诊断的结构化临床访谈抑郁部分的改编版，该改编版通过自填问卷实施。采用路径分析法评估神经质对5HTT-LPR基因型与终生重度抑郁症之间关联的中介效应。
5HTT-LPR基因型与神经质（p=0.02）和终生重度抑郁症（p=0.04）均显著相关，且神经质与终生重度抑郁症相关（p<0.001）。神经质占5HTT-LPR基因型对终生重度抑郁症影响的42.3%，表明可能存在中介作用（p<0.001）。
这些结果表明，神经质介导了5HTT-LPR基因型与终生重度抑郁症之间的关联，这与抑郁症病因学模型一致，该模型表明与焦虑相关的人格特质是情感障碍的一个重要风险因素。
