A missense polymorphism in the putative pheromone receptor gene VN1R1 is associated with sociosexual behavior

Pheromones regulate social and reproductive behavior in most mammalian species. These effects are mediated by the vomeronasal and main olfactory systems. Effects of putative pheromones on human neuroendocrine activity, brain activity and attractiveness ratings suggest that humans may communicate via...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Translational psychiatry 2017-04, Vol.7 (4), p.e1102-e1102
Main Authors: Henningsson, S, Hovey, D, Vass, K, Walum, H, Sandnabba, K, Santtila, P, Jern, P, Westberg, L
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
45/22
45/77
631/378/340
Adult
Behavioral Sciences
Biological Psychology
Chemotactic Factors - genetics
Farmakologi och toxikologi
FEMALE
Genotyping Techniques
HUMAN CHEMOSIGNAL
HUMANS
MAIN OLFACTORY EPITHELIUM
Male
Medicine
Medicine & Public Health
MICE
MOOD
Neurosciences
ODOR
Olfactory Bulb - physiology
Olfactory Mucosa - cytology
Olfactory Mucosa - metabolism
Olfactory Mucosa - physiology
Original
original-article
PERCEPTION
Pharmacology and Toxicology
Pharmacotherapy
Pheromones, Human - physiology
Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide - genetics
Psychiatry
Receptors, Odorant - genetics
Receptors, Pheromone - genetics
RESPONSES
Self Report
Sexual Behavior - physiology
Social Behavior
VOMERONASAL ORGAN
WOMEN
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Summary:Pheromones regulate social and reproductive behavior in most mammalian species. These effects are mediated by the vomeronasal and main olfactory systems. Effects of putative pheromones on human neuroendocrine activity, brain activity and attractiveness ratings suggest that humans may communicate via similar chemosignaling. Here we studied two samples of younger and older individuals, respectively, with respect to one nonsynonymous polymorphism in the gene encoding the human vomeronasal type-1 receptor 1, VN1R1 , and one nonsynonymous polymorphism in the gene encoding the olfactory receptor OR7D4 . Participants in both samples had self-reported their sociosexual behavior using the sociosexual orientation inventory, including questions regarding lifetime number of one-night stands, number of partners last year and expected number of partners the coming 5 years. In women, there was a significant association between the VN1R1 polymorphism and sociosexual behavior in both samples, driven specifically by the question regarding one-night stands. Our results support the hypothesis that human social interaction is modulated by communication via chemosignaling.
ISSN:2158-3188
2158-3188
DOI:10.1038/tp.2017.70