Association between the Catechol-O-Methyltransferase (COMT) Val158Met polymorphism and motor behavior in healthy adults: a study review.

Association between the Catechol-O-Methyltransferase (COMT) Val158Met polymorphism and motor behavior in healthy adults: a study review. Brain Res Bull. 2018 Nov 13;: Authors: de Holanda Marinho Nogueira NG, Bacelar MFB, de Paula Ferreira B, Parma JO, Lage GM Abstract The influence of individual differences in cognition and behavior may be partly explained by the different genetic polymorphisms. Among the genetic polymorphisms capable of altering cognitive and behavioral functions, the catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) Val158Met polymorphism regulates the availability of dopamine (DA) in the prefrontal cortex and has a trimodal distribution in the population. The Met allele has higher DA availability in the synaptic clefts and can be associated with cognitive stability. Val homozygous individuals exhibit lower DA concentrations in the synaptic clefts, which can be associated with cognitive flexibility. Heterozygotes have intermediate DA concentrations in the synaptic clefts. In the perspective of motor behavior, greater cognitive stability would be advantageous when the practice requires maintenance and refinement of a movement pattern, while a greater cognitive flexibility would be fundamental for practices demanding motor adaptation caused by disturbances. Thus, this integrative review aimed to analyze, in healthy populations, possible associations between the COMT polymorphism and motor behavior, as well as to investigate whethe...
Source: Brain Research Bulletin - Category: Neurology Authors: Tags: Brain Res Bull Source Type: research