Dipartimento di Scienze e Biotecnologie Medico-Chirurgiche, Sapienza Università di Roma, Italy.
Am J Primatol. 2012 Nov;74(11):1028-34. doi: 10.1002/ajp.22056. Epub 2012 Jul 25.
Genetic variation in the human serotonin system has long been studied because of its functional consequences and links to various neuropsychiatric and behavior-related disorders. Among non-human primates, the common marmosets (Callithrix jacchus) and tufted capuchins monkeys (Cebus apella) are becoming increasingly used as models to study the effects of genes, environments, and their interaction on physiology and complex behavior. In order to investigate the independent functions of and potential interactions between serotonin-related genes, anxiety and neuropsychiatric disorders, we analyzed the presence and variability of the serotonin transporter gene-linked polymorphic region (5-HTTLPR) in marmoset and capuchin monkeys. By PCR and using heterologous primers from the human sequence, we amplified and then sequenced the corresponding 5-HTT region in marmosets and capuchins. The resulting data revealed the presence of a tandem repeat sequence similar to that described in humans, but unlike humans and other Old World primates, no variable length alleles were detected in these New World monkeys, suggesting that if serotonin transporter is involved in modulating behavior in these animals it does so through different molecular mechanisms.
人类血清素系统的遗传变异一直是研究的热点，因为它与各种神经精神和行为相关的疾病有关。在非人类灵长类动物中，普通狨猴（Callithrix jacchus）和卷尾猴（Cebus apella）越来越多地被用作研究基因、环境及其相互作用对生理和复杂行为影响的模型。为了研究与血清素相关的基因、焦虑和神经精神障碍的独立功能和潜在相互作用，我们分析了狨猴和卷尾猴中血清素转运体基因连锁多态性区域（5-HTTLPR）的存在和变异性。通过 PCR 并使用来自人类序列的异源引物，我们扩增并测序了狨猴和卷尾猴中相应的 5-HTT 区域。所得数据显示存在类似于人类描述的串联重复序列，但与人类和其他旧世界灵长类动物不同，在这些新世界猴中未检测到可变长度等位基因，这表明如果血清素转运体参与调节这些动物的行为，它是通过不同的分子机制来实现的。
