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Interactions Between Early Trauma and Catechol-O-Methyltransferase Genes on Inhibitory Deficits in Children With ADHD

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Journal of Attention Disorders: A Journal of Theoretical and Applied Science

Published online on

Abstract

Objective: To investigate the interaction between childhood trauma exposure with the catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) and dopamine receptor D4 (DRD4) polymorphisms in relation to neuropsychological measures in children with ADHD. Method: A cross-sectional examination of early traumatic experiences and the continuous performance test (CPT) were performed in 55 children with ADHD. Participants were also genotyped for the DRD4 exon III 48-bp variable number of tandem repeats (VNTR) polymorphism and the COMT Val158-Met (rs4680) polymorphism. Results: There was significant interaction between the effects of the COMT genotype and trauma in commission errors. In participants with ADHD carrying the COMT Val/Val genotype, the group exposed to trauma showed significantly higher commission errors than the non-traumatized group. However, for the participants with other genotypes, no significant differences were found. Conclusion: This study suggests that there exists a genetic influence on the association between childhood trauma and the severity of inhibitory deficits in children with ADHD.