Study Report
Study Information
Basic Info
| Reference |
Kohrt, B. A.,2015 PMID: 26100613
|
| Citation |
Kohrt, B. A., et al. (2015). "Cross-cultural gene- environment interactions in depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, and the cortisol awakening response: FKBP5 polymorphisms and childhood trauma in South Asia." Int Rev Psychiatry 27(3): 180-196. |
| Phenotype |
PTSD (Total PCL-C score) |
| Trauma |
South Asian, low-income population, which has a high burden of trauma exposure |
| Study Design |
Case-control |
| Study Type |
Candidate gene association study, Gene-environment interaction study |
| Sample Size |
682 participants |
| SNP/Marker Size |
4 SNPs |
| Predominant Ethnicity |
Mongloid |
| Population |
Brahman, Chhetri, Dalit/Nepali, Janajati |
| Gender |
347 males, 335 females |
| Age |
Mean age=37 years, SD=13. |
Detail Info
| Sample Diagnosis |
DSM-IV |
| Related Diagnostic Tools |
The 21-item Beck Depression Inventory (BDI-Ia) was used to assess depression symptoms over the prior 2 weeks (Beck et al., 1961). The 17-item PTSD Checklist-Civilian Version (PCL-C) is a rating scale for assessing PTSD symptoms in contexts where administration of a structured interview schedule is not feasible (Weathers et al., 1993). The brief version of the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ) was used to assess child maltreatment (Bernstein & Fink, 1998; Bernstein et al.,2003). The Traumatic Events Inventory (TEI) was used to assess lifetime history of adult trauma (Schwartz et al., 2005, 2006). |
| Sample Status |
All of the exposure measures went through transcultural translation procedures (Van Ommeren et al., 1999). |
| Controls Exposed |
Yes |
| Replication Size |
None |
| Result Summary |
The objective of this study was to assess single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the FKBP5 gene in a population living in South Asia. Among adults in Nepal, depression was assessed with the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) with the PTSD Checklist-Civilian Version (PCL-C), and childhood maltreatment with the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ). FKBP5 SNPs were genotyped for 682 participants. Cortisol awakening response (CAR) was assessed in a subsample of 118 participants over 3 days. The FKBP5 tag-SNP rs9296158 showed a main effect on depressive symptoms (P-value= 0.03). Interaction of rs9296158 and childhood maltreatment predicted adult depressive symptoms (P-value= 0.02) but not PTSD. Childhood maltreatment associated with endocrine response in individuals homozygous for the A allele, demonstrated by a negative CAR and overall hypocortisolaemia in the rs9296158 AA genotype and childhood maltreatment group (P-value< 0.001). This study replicated findings related to FKBP5 and depression but not PTSD. Gene-environment studies should take differences in prevalence and cultural significance of phenotypes and exposures into account when interpreting cross-cultural findings. |
| Potential Biomarker |
None |
Genetic result reported by this study
