Assessment of the Genetic Characteristics of a Generation Born during a Long-Term Socioeconomic Crisis

Abstract

Background: A socioeconomic crisis in Russia lasted from 1991 to 1998 and was accompanied by a sharp drop in the birth rate. The main factor that influenced the refusal to have children during this period is thought to be prolonged social stress. Methods: comparing frequencies of common gene variants associated with stress-induced diseases among generations born before, after, and during this crisis may show which genes may be preferred under the pressure of natural selection during periods of increased social stress in urban populations. Results: In the “crisis” group, a statistically significant difference from the other two groups was found in rs6557168 frequency (p = 0.001); rs4522666 was not in the Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium in this group, although its frequency did not show a significant difference from the other groups (p = 0.118). Frequencies of VNTRs in SLC6A3 and MAOA as well as common variants rs17689918 in CRHR1, rs1360780 in FKBP5, rs53576 in OXTR, rs12720071 and rs806377 in CNR1, rs4311 in ACE, rs1800497 in ANKK1, and rs7412 and rs429358 in APOE did not differ among the groups. Conclusions: a generation born during a period of prolonged destructive events may differ from the rest of the gene pool of the population in some variants associated with personality traits or stress-related disorders.