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Dopamine D4 receptor gene variation impacts self-reported altruism

Molecular Psychiatry volume 18, pages 402–403 (2013)Cite this article

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In this journal, Bachner-Melman et al.1 reported that the 48-bp variable number of tandem repeat in the third exon of the dopamine D4 receptor (DRD4 VNTR) is associated with self-reported altruism. Despite mounting evidence for a role of dopamine in prosocial behavior,2, 3, 4 this result has not been replicated yet, perhaps because of the rare usage of the applied Selflessness Scale. Here, we report a conceptual replication of the association between DRD4 VNTR and altruism measured with the well-established Revised NEO Personality Inventory (NEO-PI-R; see Strobel et al.2).

Social decision making is impaired in various neuropsychiatric disorders.5 The increasing interest in its neurobiological underpinnings has implicated dopaminoceptive brain regions (dorsal and ventral striatum, prefrontal and cingulate cortex) in prosocial decisions.2 Furthermore, dopaminergic function is supposed to mediate the well-studied influence of oxytocin and arginine vasopressin on social behavior by functional interactions in the limbic reward circuit.5, 6 Among the dopaminergic genes, DRD4 and the gene encoding the dopamine downgrading catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) are prevalent in limbocortical regions2, 3 implicated in altruism.2 Associations of DRD4 VNTR were observed with Selflessness Scores1 and laboratory altruistic decisions.3 For COMT, associations of the Val158Met variant (rs4680) with neural activation during altruistic decisions2 and the amount of charitable donations were reported.4

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Technische Universitaet Dresden, Dresden, Germany

    K Anacker, S Enge & A Strobel

  2. Department of Psychiatry, Psychosomatics, and Psychotherapy, University of Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany

    A Reif & K-P Lesch

Authors
  1. K Anacker
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  2. S Enge
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  3. A Reif
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  4. K-P Lesch
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  5. A Strobel
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Correspondence to K Anacker.

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Anacker, K., Enge, S., Reif, A. et al. Dopamine D4 receptor gene variation impacts self-reported altruism. Mol Psychiatry 18, 402–403 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1038/mp.2012.49

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