Document Type
Dissertation
Degree
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Major/Program
Public Health
First Advisor's Name
Jessy G. Devieux
First Advisor's Committee Title
Committee Chair
Second Advisor's Name
Consuelo Beck-Sague
Second Advisor's Committee Title
Committee Member
Third Advisor's Name
William Darrow
Third Advisor's Committee Title
Committee Member
Fourth Advisor's Name
Helen Tempest
Fourth Advisor's Committee Title
Committee Member
Fifth Advisor's Name
Jean Lud Cadet
Fifth Advisor's Committee Title
Committee Member
Keywords
genetic association, genetics, neurocognitive impairment, gene-environment interaction, HIV, serotonin, serotonin genes, dopamine, dopamine genes, Holistic Health Recovery Program, HIV-associated neurocognitive impairment
Date of Defense
11-12-2014
Abstract
Memory deficits and executive dysfunction are highly prevalent among HIV-infected adults. These conditions can affect their quality of life, antiretroviral adherence, and HIV risk behaviors. Several factors have been suggested including the role of genetics in relation to HIV disease progression. This dissertation aimed to determine whether genetic differences in HIV-infected individuals were correlated with impaired memory, cognitive flexibility and executive function and whether cognitive decline moderated alcohol use and sexual transmission risk behaviors among HIV-infected alcohol abusers participating in an NIH-funded clinical trial comparing the efficacy of the adapted Holistic Health Recovery Program (HHRP-A) intervention to a Health Promotion Control (HPC) condition in reducing risk behaviors.
A total of 267 individuals were genotyped for polymorphisms in the dopamine and serotonin gene systems. Results yielded significant associations for TPH2, GALM, DRD2 and DRD4 genetic variants with impaired executive function, cognitive flexibility and memory. SNPs TPH2 rs4570625 and DRD2 rs6277 showed a risk association with executive function (odds ratio = 2.5, p = .02; 3.6, p = .001). GALM rs6741892 was associated with impaired memory (odds ratio = 1.9, p = .006). At the six-month follow-up, HHRP-A participants were less likely to report trading sex for food, drugs and money (20.0%) and unprotected insertive or receptive oral (11.6%) or vaginal and/or anal sex (3.2%) than HPC participants (49.4%, p
Identifier
FI14110727
Recommended Citation
Villalba, Karina PhD, "The Influence of Gene Environment Interaction on the Risk of Cognitive Impairment: Reducing Sexual Risk Behaviors and Alcohol Use in HIV-infected Adults" (2014). FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 1615.
https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/etd/1615
Included in
Clinical Epidemiology Commons, Community Health and Preventive Medicine Commons, Medical Genetics Commons, Public Health Education and Promotion Commons
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