[A consideration of the name of the Ajase complex].

The concept of the "Ajase complex" was advocated by Heisaku Kosawa, one of the researchers who brought psychoanalysis into Japan. Kosawa's emphasis was originally on the feeling of guilt that is based on the apologetic feeling that comes from being forgiven, in contrast with the guilt that comes from the fear of punishment. However, Okonogi, a disciple of Kosawa, began to change this concept's emphasis to mother/child friction. The Ajase (Ajatasatru) story which Kosawa and Okonogi based the origin of the name "Ajase complex" on is far different from that of the Buddhist scriptures. The most significant difference is as follows: in the Ajase legend, that comes mainly from two Buddhist scriptures, the Contemplation Sutra and the Mahayana-mahaparinirvana-sutra, the murder of the father by the child Ajase is the main theme and resembles the Oedipus complex. The episode of Ajase trying to kill her mother, Vaidehi, comes from the mother Vaidehi trying to help the imprisoned king and does not come from mother/child friction. In the Ajase complex, the mother's planned pregnancy to ensure the connection of love with her husband, the king, the attempted murder of Ajase, who is the reincarnation of the hermit, by Vaidehi, and the story of how a mother's love saves Ajase from the hate that grew out of the mother/child friction, are not included in the above-mentioned Buddhist scriptures. The story to back up the Ajase complex comes from Kosawa and Okonogi's new interpretation and origination. In this article, the authors are not trying to deny the value of the specific pathological mother/child relationship suggested by the Ajase complex. It is not the definition that we doubt, but the naming.

Involvement of a polymorphism in the 5-HT2A receptor gene in impulsive behavior.

RATIONALE AND OBJECTIVE: Impulsive behavior has been suggested to occur due to a dysfunction of serotonergic 5-HT neurotransmission. After evaluation by a self-reporting measure, a polymorphism in the promoter of the 5-HT2A receptor gene has been proposed to underlie the impulsive behavior; however, this hypothesis is not convincing. In this study, we examined whether this 5-HT2A receptor gene polymorphism is involved in impulsive aggression by evaluating a behavioral task (go/no-go task) in normal volunteers. MATERIALS AND METHODS: The polymorphism of the 5-HT2A receptor gene promoter was analyzed by polymerase chain reaction using lymphocytes from 71 volunteers. Impulsivity was defined as the number of commission errors (responding when one should not) made during a go/no-go task (a larger number of commission errors indicates greater difficulty in inhibiting the behavior). RESULTS: The subjects in the group with the A-1438A allele of the 5-HT2A receptor gene (A-1438A group) made more commission errors under the punishment-reward condition in a go/no-go task than those in the G-1438G group. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest the possible involvement of the A-1438A polymorphism of the 5-HT2A receptor gene in impulsive behavior; this was evaluated using a behavioral task measure that can directly reveal the traits of human impulsive behavior.