RESEARCH & INNOVATION
THE GENETICS OF RISK
DNA may determine your taste for danger .
BY HEATHER BUSCHMAN , PHD ' 08
PSYCHIATRY PROFESSOR Abraham Palmer considers himself a bit of a risk-taker . When he was younger , he enjoyed zipping around on a motorcycle . More recently , it ’ s a bicycle . But he still tends to drive over the speed limit .
Some risk-taking can be life-threatening , yes , but it ’ s not all bad , he says .
“ Being willing to take risks is essential to success in the modern world ,” says Palmer , who also serves as vice chair for basic research at UC San Diego School of Medicine . “ Investing money , launching a startup company , running for elected office … these all involve risks .”
Palmer and postdoctoral student Sandra Sanchez-Roige seek to understand the genetic basis of how we either engage in or avoid risky behaviors . In a recent collaboration with a global research team , the UC San Diego researchers asked more than 1 million participants a simple question to assess their overall risk tolerance : “ Do you think of yourself as someone who likes to take risks ?” They also asked participants if they took part in specific risky behaviors , such as speeding , drinking and smoking .
The study , published earlier this year in Nature Genetics , uncovered 124 genetic variants associated with a person ’ s willingness to take risks .
“ No single genetic variant on its own meaningfully affects a particular person ’ s risk tolerance ,” Palmer cautions . “ Non-genetic factors still matter more when it comes to taking risks . But the combined effect of these 124 genes can be significant .”
Scientists previously thought risk tolerance might be linked to genes related to dopamine or serotonin , neurochemicals that help process rewards and regulate moods . But the team didn ’ t find that at all in this study . Instead , their results suggested that the neurochemicals glutamate and GABA contribute to variations in risk tolerance . Both are important regulators of brain activity .
Abraham Palmer Psychiatry professor , vice chair for basic research at UC San Diego School of Medicine
The team also found overlap in the genetic influences on risk tolerance and several neuropsychiatric traits , including ADHD and bipolar disorder . “ Risk-taking is thought to play a role in many psychiatric disorders ,” says study collaborator Murray Stein , vice-chair for clinical research in psychiatry at the School of Medicine . “ For example , patients with anxiety disorders may perceive increased risk in certain situations and therefore avoid them unnecessarily . Understanding the genetic basis for risk tolerance is critical to understanding these disorders and developing better treatments .”
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