Genetic variants of the type-3 metabotropic glutamate receptor gene associated with human spatial localization ability

Abstract People present and transform spatial information through spatial cognitive abilities to learn and adapt to the environment. Accumulating evidence exhibits individual difference in spatial cognition, which is ascribed to environmental and genetic factors. The detail knowledge remains to be investigated. In this study, 941 healthy college students were recruited, and their spatial localization ability, an essential symbol of spatial cognitive ability, was measured. We analyzed the individual difference in spatial localization and relative influence factors. We selected the type-3 metabotropic glutamate receptor (GRM3) gene to dissect the genetic role in spatial cognition. In this study, both individual general cognitive ability and spatial localization were influenced by age, birthplace, growing environment, occupation and educational level of parent, and genetic variants of GRM3. The variants of GRM3 were significantly associated with spatial localization, and not associated with general cognitive ability. The carriers of the AA of rs6465084 or the TT of rs1468412 exhibited a weak spatial localization ability, and even the relative non-genetic factors above-mentioned were well controlled. Conclusion: Our results suggest that genetic variants of GRM3 are significantly associated with the spatial localization ability in the healthy people.