Associations between experimental substance use, FAAH-gene variations, impulsivity and sensation seeking

  1. Evelio Huertas 1
  2. José A. López-Moreno 1
  3. Vanessa Fernández 1
  4. Víctor Echeverry-Alzate 2
  5. Kora-M Bühler 1
  1. 1 Universidad Complutense de Madrid
    info

    Universidad Complutense de Madrid

    Madrid, España

    ROR 02p0gd045

  2. 2 Univerfsidad Complutense de Madrid
Journal:
Psicothema

ISSN: 0214-9915,  1886-144X

Year of publication: 2019

Volume: 31

Issue: 3

Pages: 239-245

Type: Article

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More publications in: Psicothema

Abstract

Background: Experimental substance use among young people is related to individual factors including personality traits such as impulsivity and sensation seeking, and genetic variations such as single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the fatty acid amide hydrolase (FAAH) gene. The objective of this study is to analyze the relationship between these three sets of variables. Methods: Volunteer undergraduate students (N = 861, 76% female, M = 20.7 years) completed an ad hoc questionnaire on variables related to their consumption of alcohol, tobacco, cannabis, synthetic drugs and cocaine. In addition, 591 of them completed the Barratt Impulsiveness Scale-11 (BIS-11) and the Sensation Seeking Scale-V (SSS-V). All participants were genotyped in FAAH C385A SNP and its proxy variant rs12075550. Results: Consistent with previous data, both impulsivity and sensation seeking were associated with most of the variables related to experimental substance use. In addition, we found the first evidence of an association between the rs12075550 SNP and some of these consumption phenotypes. However, no significant association was found between either of the two SNPs and impulsivity or sensation seeking. Conclusions: The results highlight the importance of considering both personality and genetic differences, together with contextual factors, in the analysis of substance use.

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Funding information

This work was supported by Fondo de Investigación Sanitaria -Red de Trastornos Adictivos - FEDER (RD16/0017/0008), Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (PEJ-2014-A-17012-C) and Ministerio de Sanidad, Consumo y Bienestar Social - Plan Nacional sobre Drogas (2018-050).

Funders

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