Research Article Association Between Polymorphisms in the Dopamine Transporter Gene and Depression Evidence for aGene-Environment Interaction in a Sample of

ABSTRACT—Previous research has generated examples of how genetic and environmental factors can interact to create risk for psychopathology. Using a gene-by-envi-ronment (G E) interaction design, we tested whether three polymorphisms in the dopamine transporter gene (DAT1, also referred to as SLC6A3, located at 5p15.33) interacted with maternal parenting style to predict first-onset episodes of depression. Participants were male ad-olescents (N 5 176) recruited from a juvenile detention center in northern Russia. As hypothesized, one of the polymorphisms (rs40184) moderated the effect of per-ceived maternal rejection on the onset of major depressive disorder, as well as on suicidal ideation. Further, this G E interaction was specific to depression; it did not predict clinically significant anxiety. These results highlight th