Significant association was found between the DRD4 -616 CC genotype and BPD traits among US at-risk young adults, which was replicated in a Hungarian psychiatric patient sample. Association of the DRD2 TaqI B1-allele and A1-allele was also observed among the US young adults, however, this association was not present in the Hungarian inpatient psychiatric sample. The association between the indicated dopaminergic SNPs and BPD traits among young adults of low socioeconomic status remained significant after controlling for variance related to severity of abuse in the logistic regression equation. The role of the COMT or DAT1 polymorphisms in BPD symptom development among at-risk young adults or psychiatric patients was not supported by the present association analysis. Our results highlight the possible involvement of dopamine receptor variants in the development of BPD traits and call for further investigation of the dopamine system contribution in BPD.
