Talk:Dopamine receptor D4

Elongated receptors response to dopamine
"cells with an elongated copy of this gene appear to react more strongly to dopamine molecules." Isn't it the other way around? In The Tangled Wing by Melvin Konnor (2002) New York NY: Henry Holt ISBN 0-7167-4602-6 p. 87 it says "Repeats make the protein longer, which makes the receptor weaker, so that it binds less dopamine." This quote from Konnor matches my understanding, which is that novelty-seeking or thrill-seeking is associated with less production of dopamine; fewer or weaker dopamine receptors; and faster breakdown of dopamine (though I might have some of that wrong), so that high stimulation is required in order to generate enough dopamine to have much of an effect. ☺ Coppertwig (talk) 13:38, 4 May 2008 (UTC)


 * Good catch. I have replaced more strongly with less strongly in the text and included a citation documenting this fact.  Cheers.  Boghog2 (talk) 14:52, 4 May 2008 (UTC)


 * Actually, the various variants have variable affinities for dopamine in heterologous cell expression systems. There's also differences in expression levels in these systems. I'll try to locate the relevant publications this week... &mdash; Scientizzle 18:29, 4 May 2008 (UTC)

liberal gene
a study shows this gene correlates with liberal political attitudes when coupled with an active adolescent social life. --Wongba (talk) 21:54, 28 October 2010 (UTC)

I also saw this article. It refers to the article: Friendships Moderate an Association Between a Dopamine Gene Varient and Political Ideology. Available at http://dss.ucsd.edu/~cdawes/Christopher%20Dawes_files/friends.pdf. I'm going to provide a sentence and the link, but in the context of the rest of the article, it's going to sound very contravercial. PCAndrew (talk) 19:57, 29 October 2010 (UTC)

It looks like someone just edited with a link to a pop-science article, I'll delete that and add the real paper (no offense whoever you were!) PCAndrew (talk) 20:01, 29 October 2010 (UTC)

removed sections
I just took the following out because there is no reference to the asserted autism association and the reference cited for bulima does not actually show an association with builima.

, like autism and bulimia nervosa

DRD4 and Early Development (Parenting gene??)
I was reading an article for my developmental psychology class and came across this paragraph saying that "parental quality interacts with the 7-repeat allele of the dopamine D4 receptor gene (DRD4) to influence temperament dimensions related to self-regulation." The article doesn't go much farther to elaborate, but would this information be helpful to include on this page? Linp11 (talk) 15:46, 1 March 2012 (UTC)
 * That addition, phrased that way, would be confusing (though there should be a mention of DRD4's role). Parental quality is undefined, and it doesn't say what the correlation is (positive, negative, etc.). The article does describe a bit more what the correlation is, that better parenting leads to better effortful control(this would be a good psych article to make) for those with the 7-repeat allele of DRD4. I've added in a section for cognitive development. You are welcome to correct/critique my addition. On a side note, I found the study of a "novel toy" to soothe repeatedly distressed infants somewhat sardonic. If you have any questions, feel free to ask.Smallman12q (talk) 21:14, 1 March 2012 (UTC)
 * Thank you, Smallman12q! Linp11 (talk) 17:47, 2 March 2012 (UTC)

Novelty Seeking
I'm not entirely sure the description of the conclusions of the meta analysis conducted are accurate. The meta-analysis suggests that the drd4 receptor may be associated with novelty seeking and impulsiveness, but not extraversion. Zuckerman's work on sensation seeking as a personality trait has suggested also that there is no link between extraversion and sensation seeking, so this meta-analysis would seem to support Zuckerman's conception of sensation seeking having a relationshipy to the drd4 receptor. User:anon 12:42, 13 April (UTC)

In popular culture
I don't want to be the one who adds an "in popular culture" section to this article. They tend to attract trivia, although the subject here is so specific it's unlikely.

The 2020 thriller Fair Warning by Michael Connelly tells a story about an investigative reporter tracking down an incel serial killer who takes advantage of poor government oversight on the commercial genetic sequencing industry to purchase identities of female victims with DRD4 expressed in their genes because DRD4 is linked to risky sexual behavior. ~Anachronist (talk) 02:32, 19 August 2020 (UTC)