QC FYI: Scientists Find Possible ‘Monogamy Gene’

Your desire to be promiscuous or monogamous may be linked to genetics, says a new study from Sweden. In the study, researcher Hasse Walum and his colleagues at Karolinska Institute found that allele 334—a gene variant linked to Vasopressin, an important hormone that may make men prone to marital strife and less likely to wed.
The study asked 522 male twin sets (some married with kids, some not), questions about their relationships and compared their answers to their DNA. About 40 percent of the men had one or two copies of allele 334.
QUOTE: “Studies of male prairie voles (small burrowing rodents) have shown the same hormone – vasopressin – affects voles’ abilities to remain monogamous. Vasopressin is released into the brain of mammals during sexual activity. The team found that men who carry one or two copies of the gene variant often behave differently in relationships than men who lack it.
“The incidence of allele 334 was statistically linked to how strong a bond a man felt he had with his partner. Men who had two copies of allele 334 [RS3 334] were also twice as likely to have had a marital or relational crisis in the past year than those who lacked the gene variant.
“Women married to men who carry one or two copies of allele 334 [RS3 334] were, on average, less satisfied with their relationship than women married to men who didn’t carry this allele,” said Walum in a press release.
He further stressed that the effect of this genetic variation is relatively modest, and it cannot be used to predict with any real accuracy how someone will behave in a future relationship. You can read more about the study here.