Get 20M+ Full-Text Papers For Less Than $1.50/day. Start a 14-Day Trial for You or Your Team.

Learn More →

Methylation polymorphism influences practice effects in children during attention tasks

Methylation polymorphism influences practice effects in children during attention tasks Epigenetic mechanisms mediate the influence of experience on gene expression. Methylation is a principal method for inducing epigenetic effects on DNA. In this paper, we examine alleles of the methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) gene that vary enzyme activity, altering the availability of the methyl donor and thus changing the efficiency of methylation. We hypothesized that alleles of the MTHFR gene would influence behavior in an attention-related task in conjunction with genes known to influence attention. We found that seven-year-old children homozygous for the C allele of MTHFR in interaction with the catechol O-methyltransferase (COMT) gene showed greater improvement in overall reaction time (RT) and in conflict resolution with practice on the Attention Network Test (ANT). This finding indicates that methylation may operate on or through genes that influence executive network operation. However, MTHFR T allele carriers showed faster overall RT and conflict resolution. Some children showed an initial improvement in ANT RT followed by a decline in performance, and we found that alleles of the dopamine beta-hydroxylase (DBH) gene were related to this performance decline. These results suggest a genetic dissociation between improvement while learning a skill and reduction in performance with continued practice. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Cognitive Neuroscience Taylor & Francis

Methylation polymorphism influences practice effects in children during attention tasks

Download PDF

Methylation polymorphism influences practice effects in children during attention tasks

Abstract

Epigenetic mechanisms mediate the influence of experience on gene expression. Methylation is a principal method for inducing epigenetic effects on DNA. In this paper, we examine alleles of the methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) gene that vary enzyme activity, altering the availability of the methyl donor and thus changing the efficiency of methylation. We hypothesized that alleles of the MTHFR gene would influence behavior in an attention-related task in conjunction with genes known...
Loading next page...
 
/lp/taylor-francis/methylation-polymorphism-influences-practice-effects-in-children-m4JRIeBJFm
Publisher
Taylor & Francis
Copyright
© 2016 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group
ISSN
1758-8936
eISSN
1758-8928
DOI
10.1080/17588928.2016.1170006
Publisher site
See Article on Publisher Site

Abstract

Epigenetic mechanisms mediate the influence of experience on gene expression. Methylation is a principal method for inducing epigenetic effects on DNA. In this paper, we examine alleles of the methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) gene that vary enzyme activity, altering the availability of the methyl donor and thus changing the efficiency of methylation. We hypothesized that alleles of the MTHFR gene would influence behavior in an attention-related task in conjunction with genes known to influence attention. We found that seven-year-old children homozygous for the C allele of MTHFR in interaction with the catechol O-methyltransferase (COMT) gene showed greater improvement in overall reaction time (RT) and in conflict resolution with practice on the Attention Network Test (ANT). This finding indicates that methylation may operate on or through genes that influence executive network operation. However, MTHFR T allele carriers showed faster overall RT and conflict resolution. Some children showed an initial improvement in ANT RT followed by a decline in performance, and we found that alleles of the dopamine beta-hydroxylase (DBH) gene were related to this performance decline. These results suggest a genetic dissociation between improvement while learning a skill and reduction in performance with continued practice.

Journal

Cognitive Neuroscience – Taylor & Francis

Published: Apr 3, 2017

Keywords: Attention network test; Conflict; MTHFR; DBH; COMT; Epigenetic

References

  • Practice and retention: A unifying analysis
  • Genome-wide DNA methylation differences between late-onset Alzheimer’s disease and cognitively normal controls in human frontal cortex
  • Regulatory polymorphisms in human DBH affect peripheral gene expression and sympathetic activity
  • The cognitive genetics of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD): Sustained attention as a candidate phenotype
  • Mice deficient in methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase exhibit hyperhomocysteinemia and decreased methylation capacity, with neuropathology and aortic lipid deposition
  • The impact of MTHFR 677 C/T genotypes on folate status markers: A meta-analysis of folic acid intervention studies
  • Dopamine β-hydroxylase: Two polymorphisms in linkage disequilibrium at the structural gene DBH associate with biochemical phenotypic variation
  • DNA methylation regulates associative reward learning
  • The strategy-specific nature of improvement: The power law applies by strategy within task
  • Role of plasma homocyesteine levels and MTHDR polymorphisms on IQ scores in children and young adults with epilepsy treated with antiepileptic drugs
  • Catechol-O-methyltransferase gene polymorphisms are associated with multiple pain-evoking stimuli
  • Genetic basis for individual variations in pain perception and the development of a chronic pain condition
  • Effects of noise letters upon the identification of a target letter in a nonsearch task
  • DNA methylation controls the timing of astrogliogenesis through regulation of JAK-STAT signaling
  • The activation of attentional networks
  • Testing the efficiency and independence of attentional networks
  • Multimodal imaging of the self-regulating developing brain
  • A common mutation in the 5,10-methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase gene affects genomic DNA methylation through an interaction with folate status
  • Methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase gene polymorphisms in children with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder
  • Noradrenergic genotype predicts lapses in sustained attention
  • The role of epigenetic regulation in learning and memory
  • The power law repealed: The case for an exponential law of practice
  • Short-term learning induces white matter plasticity in the fornix
  • Epigenome-wide differences in pathology-free regions of multiple sclerosis-affected brains
  • Repeated measurement of the components of attention using two versions of the Attention Network Test (ANT): Stability, isolability, robustness, and reliability
  • Folate pathway polymorphisms predict deficits in attention and processing speed after childhood leukemia therapy
  • Effects of motivation on children’s attention and performance
  • Biological methylation of myelin basic protein: Enzymology and biological significance
  • Homocysteine levels and cognitive function scores measured with MMSE and BCAT of middle-aged and elderly subjects in Tianjin City
  • COMT and MTHFR polymorphisms interaction on cognition in schizophrenia: An exploratory study
  • A model for modulation of neuronal synchronization by D4 dopamine receptor-mediated phospholipid methylation
  • Patterned stimulation at the theta frequency is optimal for the induction of hippocampal long-term potentiation
  • Associations between genetic variation in one-carbon metabolism and LINE-1 DNA methylation in histologically normal breast tissues
  • Predictors of early growth in academic achievement: The head-toes-knees-shoulders task
  • Epigenetic regulation of the glucocorticoid receptor in human brain associates with childhood abuse
  • Motor skill learning requires active central myelination
  • Molecular mechanism for age-related memory loss: The histone-binding protein RbAp48
  • Altered histone acetylation is associated with age-dependent memory impairment in mice
  • Touch your toes! Developing a direct measure of behavioral regulation in early childhood
  • Measuring alertness
  • Mechanisms of white matter change induced by meditation training
  • Three-month B vitamin supplementation in pre-school children affects folate status and homocysteine, but not cognitive performance
  • Homocysteine and cognitive function in healthy elderly community dwellers in Italy
  • MTHFR 677C --> T genotype disrupts prefrontal function in schizophrenia through an interaction with COMT 158Val --> met
  • A hypomethylating variant of MTHFR, 677C> T, blunts the neural response to errors in patients with schizophrenia and healthy individuals
  • Interactive effects of COMT Val108/158Met and MTHFR C677T on executive function in schizophrenia
  • Developing mechanisms of self-regulation in early life
  • D4 dopamine receptor-mediated phospholipid methylation and its implications for mental illnesses such as schizophrenia
  • Genomic DNA hypomethylation, a characteristic of most cancers, is present in peripheral leukocytes of individuals who are homozygous for the C677T polymorphism in the methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase gene
  • Training of working memory impacts structural connectivity
  • Short-term meditation induces white matter changes in the anterior cingulate
  • Methylation of the glial fibrillary acidic protein gene shows novel biphasic changes during brain development
  • Effects of the social environment and stress on glucocorticoid receptor gene methylation: A systematic review
  • A polymorphism related to methylation influences attention during performance of speeded skills
  • Variations in catechol-O-methyltransferase gene interact with parenting to influence attention in early development
  • White matter plasticity in adulthood
  • Plasticity in gray and white: Neuroimaging changes in brain structure during learning