Effect of Stress and Serotonin-Transporter-Linked Polymorphic Region Variants on Internet Gaming Disorder in Korean Adults

OBJECTIVES: Internet gaming disorder (IGD) is known to be related to stress and the serotonin-transporter-linked polymorphic region (5-HTTLPR) that is known to be associated with stress and has been studied to affect various psychiatric illness outbreaks. We tried to examine the relationship between stress, 5-HTTLPR and IGD. METHODS: A total of 59 participants with IGD, diagnosed according to the 5th edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) criteria and 67 normal controls (NC) were enrolled. The IGD group and the NC were compared using chisquare test and independent sample t-test, and logistic regression analysis was used to examine the relationship between stress, the 5-HTTLPR, and IGD. RESULTS: The mean scores for anxiety, impulsivity and stress were significantly higher in the IGD group than in the NC. In addition, there was a significant association between stress and IGD [odds ratio (OR) = 1.172, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.008–1.362]. CONCLUSIONS: This study showed that stress would affect IGD. Therefore, the evaluation and management of stress should be included in the diagnosis and treatment of IGD.

The association of the polymorphism of the 5-HTT gene with alcohol use disorders / 中华行为医学与脑科学杂志

Objective To investigate the possible associations of two polymorphisms (5-HTTLPR and STin2VNTR)of the serotonin transporter gene with alcohol use disorders (AUD).Methods 281 AUD cases (AUDIT score≥ 10) and 277 healthy controls (AUDIT score ≤5) were recruited in this study.All participants were genotyped using the PCR technique.Results The frequency of the L-allele of the 5-HTTLPR was 39.01％,and the 10-allele of STin2VNTR was 8.42％ in this population,the allele frequencies of both polymorphisms were consistent with Asian normal populations.No significant association was observed between 5-HTTLPR and AUD,but the genotypic and allele frequencies of the STin2VNTR were significant different between two groups even after Bonferroni adjustment,the 12 repeat allele of the STin2VNTR was significantly associated with the risk effect for AUD.Haplotype analysis for those two polymorphisms revealed no association between 4 haplotype combinations and AUD.Conclusion There is no relationship between 5-HTTLPR and AUD.The STin2VNTR polymorphism of 5-HTT may play a role in the pathogenesis of AUD.