Citation

Walter A, Herrold A, Gallagher VT, Lee M, Scaramuzzo M, Bream T, Seidenberg P, Vandenbergh D, O'Connor K, Talavage TM, Nauman E, Slobounov S, Breiter H. J. Neurotrauma 2019; 36(7): 1115-1124.

Affiliation

Northwestern University, Concussion Neuroimaging Consortium, Dept of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Chicago, Illinois, United States ; h-breiter@northwestern.edu.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2019, Mary Ann Liebert Publishers)

DOI

10.1089/neu.2017.5622

PMID

30351182

Abstract

This candidate gene study evaluated the relationship of a past history of concussion with single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in nine genes in a small cohort (N=87) of a nationally ranked Division I football team. Genes and SNPs studied were selected based on their published connection to brain injury and brain development, as well as, impulsivity. We used multinomial logistic regression analysis (MLRA) to quantify how well genotype predicted the number of previously diagnosed concussions (3 categories: none, one, two or more), while covarying race and number of years participating in football. The rs4504469 SNP for KIAA0319 was the only locus that significantly predicted number of previously diagnosed concussions (p=.005, meeting Bonferroni correction for multiple comparisons). The KIAA0319 results raise the hypothesis that having the CT or TT genotype of KIAA0319 may be predictive of a lower incidence of previously diagnosed concussion. This finding raises a number of hypotheses for future preclinical research, particularly whether alterations in neural organization related to KIAA0319 rs4504469 lead to reduced susceptibility for lasting head trauma, or greater resilience in the face of repeated subconcussive injury.

Keywords: American football

Language: en

Keywords

GENETIC FACTORS; HUMAN STUDIES; TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY