The Washington Post reports that a gene variation makes some people more vulnerable to clinical depression after a major trauma (e.g. divorce, job loss). The article utters nary a word about IQ or testosterone, but offers this tidbit:
“Moffitt’s study, being published today in the journal Science, involved Caucasian patients, specifically a group of New Zealanders of mainly English, Scottish and Irish descent. There has been limited study of such genetic variations in other ethnic groups, Moffitt said, although preliminary studies indicated that groups in West Africa, as well as African Americans, were more likely to have the protective form of the gene. Small studies in Japan, Korea and China found a higher frequency of the gene that increases vulnerability, she said. Neither Moffitt nor Weinberger knew of any studies examining the question in Hispanics or Native Americans.”
Comments are closed.