AUTHOR=Witte A. Veronica , Jansen Stefanie , Schirmacher Anja , Young Peter , Flöel Agnes 

TITLE=COMT Val158Met Polymorphism Modulates Cognitive Effects of Dietary Intervention

JOURNAL=Frontiers in Aging Neuroscience

VOLUME=2

YEAR=2010

URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/aging-neuroscience/articles/10.3389/fnagi.2010.00146

DOI=10.3389/fnagi.2010.00146

ISSN=1663-4365

ABSTRACT=<p>A common single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in the gene encoding catechol-<italic>O</italic>-methyltransferase (COMT), <italic>Val</italic>158<italic>Met</italic>, is thought to influence cognitive performance due to differences in prefrontal dopaminergic neurotransmission. Previous studies lend support for the hypothesis that the “at risk” genotype comprising two <italic>Val</italic>-alleles (low dopamine) might benefit more from plasticity-enhancing interventions than carriers of one or two <italic>Met</italic>-alleles. This study aimed to determine whether the response to dietary interventions, known to modulate cognition, is dependent on COMT genotype. Blood samples of 35 healthy elderly subjects (61.3 years ±8 SD; 19 women, 16 men, BMI: 28.2 kg/m<sup>2</sup> ±4 SD) were genotyped for COMT <italic>Val</italic>158<italic>Met</italic> by standard procedures (<italic>Val/Val</italic> = 6; <italic>Val/Met</italic> = 20; <italic>Met/Met</italic> = 9). Subjects had previously completed a randomized controlled trial investigating the effects of caloric restriction (CR) or enhancement of unsaturated fatty acids (UFA) on immediate and delayed verbal recognition memory. Homozygous <italic>Val/Val</italic>-carriers had significantly lower memory scores than <italic>Met</italic>-carriers at baseline (<italic>p</italic> &lt; 0.001). Significant interactions of genotype and dietary intervention with regard to cognition were found: CR- and UFA enhancement-induced memory improvements of <italic>Val/Val</italic>-carriers were considerably greater than those of <italic>Met</italic>-carriers (ANOVA <italic>p</italic>'s &lt; 0.02). The current study shows for the first time that cognitive effects of dietary interventions are dependent on COMT <italic>Val</italic>158<italic>Met</italic> genotype. Our findings lend further support to the hypothesis that an “at risk” genotype might benefit more from plasticity-enhancing interventions than the “not at risk” genotype. This might help to develop individualized therapies in future research based on genetic background.</p>