Forsøget viser, at genetiske faktorer kan påvirke, hvordan børn reagerer på mishandling. I en undersøgelse af en stor gruppe drengebørn fra fødsel til voksenliv fandt forskerne, at en bestemt polymorfi i genet for enzymet monoaminoxidase A (MAOA) kunne moderere virkningen af mishandling.
Titel på undersøgelse:
Role of Genotype in the Cycle of Violence in Maltreated Children.
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Hele abstrakt på originalsprog:
We studied a large sample of male children from birth to adulthood to determine why some children who are maltreated grow up to develop antisocial behavior, whereas others do not. A functional polymorphism in the gene encoding the neurotransmitter-metabolizing enzyme monoamine oxidase A (MAOA) was found to moderate the effect of maltreatment. Maltreated children with a genotype conferring high levels of MAOA expression were less likely to develop antisocial problems. These findings may partly explain why not all victims of maltreatment grow up to victimize others, and they provide epidemiological evidence that genotypes can moderate children’s sensitivity to environmental insults.