July 2004

E. B. Moje

AAAS®, SCIENCE®, Science Online, Science's STKE, and SAGE KE are trademarks of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

Serotonin Transporter Genetic Variation and the Response of the Human Amygdala Ahmad R. Hariri,1 Venkata S. Mattay,1 Alessandro Tessitore,1 Bhaskar Kolachana,1 Francesco Fera,1 David Goldman,2 Michael F. Egan,1 Daniel R. Weinberger1* A functional polymorphism in the promoter region of the human serotonin transporter gene (SLC6A4) has been associated with several dimensions of neuroticism and psychopathology, especially anxiety traits, but the predictive value of this genotype against these complex behaviors has been inconsistent. Serotonin [5- hydroxytryptamine, (5-HT)] function influences normal fear as well as pathological anxiety, behaviors critically dependent on the amygdala in animal models and in clinical studies. We now report that individuals with one or two copies of the short allele of the serotonin transporter (5-HTT) promoter polymorphism, which has been associated with reduced 5-HTT expression and function and increased fear and anxiety-related behaviors, exhibit greater amygdala neuronal activity, as assessed by BOLD functional magnetic resonance imaging, in response to fearful stimuli compared with individuals homozygous for the long allele.