Monoamine Oxidase A gene polymorphisms and self reported aggressive behaviour in a Pakistani ethnic group.

OBJECTIVE To investigate the association of monoamine oxidase Agene polymorphisms with aggression. METHODS The study was conducted in an ethnic community in Lahore, Pakistan, from August 2008 to December 2009 on the basis of data that was collected through a questionnaire between August 2004 and September 2005. It analysed 10 single nucleotide polymorphisms of monoamine oxidase A in unrelated males from the same ethnic background who were administered a Punjabi translation of the Buss and Perry aggression questionnaire. SPSS 13 was used for statistical analysis. RESULTS Of the total 133 haplotypes studied, 52(39%) were Haplotype A, 58(43.6%) B, 8(6%) C, 3(2.3%) D, 9(6.8%) E and 3(2.3%) F. The six haplotypes were analysed for association with scores of the four subscales of the aggression questionnaire and multivariate analysis of variance showed no significant differences (p>0.05 each) in the error variances of the total scores and scores for three of the sub-scales across the haplotypes. The variance was significantly different only for the anger sub-scale (p<0.05). CONCLUSIONS The association of an extended haplotype with low levels of self-reported aggression in this study should assist in characterisation of functional variants responsible for non-aggressive behaviour in male subjects.