Mitochondrial DNA polymorphisms and extraversion

Abstract

Mitochondria is the major site of energy production in cells, therefore, mitochondrial abnormality may affect functions of organs including the brain, which constantly requires high levels of energy consumption. Previous studies have suggested a role of mitochondria and their DNA polymorphisms in neuro-psychiatric disorders, including Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, schizophrenia and bipolar mood disorder. Thus, we hypothesized that mitochondrial DNA polymorphisms might be related with the development of personality. The present study investigated a role of two mitochondrial DNA polymorphisms, the C5178A and A10398G, in personality traits evaluated using the NEO PI-R scores in 238 healthy Japanese volunteers. Subjects with the 5178A genotype showed significantly higher extraversion score than those with the 5178C genotype (P = 0.027), while no significant association was observed between the C5178A polymorphism and other scores. No significant association was found between the A10398G polymorphism and any scores. Regarding the 5178-10398 haplotype, the score of extraversion, not other scores, was significantly associated with the A-G haplotype (P = 0.042). Although further studies are recommended for the confirmation, the result may suggest a role of the mitochondrial DNA polymorphism in the personality trait.

Mitochondrial ND3 G10398A mutation: a biomarker for breast cancer

“…In addition, an analysis of 69 polymorphisms in European American women showed that G10398A was associated with increased breast cancer risk (Bai et al, 2007). This mutation is also reported at high frequency in several Asian populations (Kato et al, 2004;Zafarina, 2004). However, the literature contains multiple conflicting reports regarding which nucleotide sequence is associated with cancer.…”

Parent‐of‐origin and trans‐generational germline influences on behavioral development: The interacting roles of mothers, fathers, and grandparents

“…Moreover, as mitochondria play a crucial role in regulating apoptotic and metabolic pathways in neurons, where mitochondria copy number is especially high, it is not surprising that polymorphic variation in mtDNA has been associated with the increased likelihood of developing various psychiatric disorders ) including Alzheimer's disease (Elson et al, 2006), schizophrenia (Martorell et al, 2006), bipolar disorder (Rollins et al, 2009), autism (Weissman et al, 2008), and Parkinson's disease (Bender et al, 2006) as well as variations in human personality traits (Kato et al, 2004) and cognitive ability (Byrne et al, 2009;Thomas, Miller, & MascieTaylor, 1998).…”

Mitochondrial involvement in psychiatric disorders

“…Kato et al (2004) (89) examined two mtDNA polymorphisms, C5178A and A10398G, which are located in coding regions of complex I NADH dehydrogenase subunit 2 (MT-ND2) and NADH dehydrogenase subunit 3 (MT-ND3) genes. They reported a significant association between the C5178A polymorphism and extraversion in healthy controls (n = 238).…”