The COMT Val158Met polymorphism and temporal lobe morphometry in healthy adults

Taylor, Warren D.; Züchner, Stephan; Payne, Martha E.; Messer, Denise F.; Doty, Tracy J.; MacFall, James R.; Beyer, John L.; Krishnan, K. Ranga R.

doi:10.1016/j.pscychresns.2007.01.005

« Previous Next »Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging
Volume 155, Issue 2 , Pages 173-177, 15 July 2007

The COMT Val158Met polymorphism and temporal lobe morphometry in healthy adults

Warren D. Taylor
- Department of Psychiatry, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, USA
- Corresponding author. Duke University Medical Center, DUMC 3903, Durham, NC 27710, USA. Tel.: +1 919 668 7887; fax: +1 919 681 7668.
Stephan Züchner
- Department of Psychiatry, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, USA
- Center for Human Genetics, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, USA
Martha E. Payne
- Department of Psychiatry, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, USA
Denise F. Messer
- Department of Psychiatry, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, USA
Tracy J. Doty
- Department of Psychiatry, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, USA
- TJD is now at the Laboratory of Brain and Cognition, NIMH, Bethesda, MD, USA and the Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institute, Karolinska Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden.
James R. MacFall
- Department of Radiology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, USA
John L. Beyer
- Department of Psychiatry, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, USA
K. Ranga R. Krishnan
- Department of Psychiatry, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, USA

Received 16 October 2006; received in revised form 5 January 2007; accepted 20 January 2007.

Abstract

We examined the relationship between COMT Val158Met genotype and temporal lobe volumes, including the caudate as a control region. Thirty-one healthy subjects completed 1.5T brain MRI and genotyping. After controlling for demographics, Val158 allele homozygotes exhibited significantly smaller temporal lobe and hippocampal volumes, with a trend for smaller amygdala volumes.

Keywords: Magnetic resonance imaging, Genetic polymorphisms, Hippocampus, Temporal lobe