Abstract
Job-related exhaustion is the core dimension of burnout, a work-related stress syndrome that has several negative health consequences. In this study, we explored the molecular genetic background of job-related exhaustion. A genome-wide analysis of job-related exhaustion was performed in the GENMETS subcohort (n = 1256) of the Finnish population-based Health 2000 study. Replication analyses included an analysis of the strongest associations in the rest of the Health 2000 sample (n = 1660 workers) and in three independent populations (the FINRISK population cohort, n = 10 753; two occupational cohorts, total n = 1451). Job-related exhaustion was ascertained using a standard self-administered questionnaire (the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI)-GS exhaustion scale in the Health 2000 sample and the occupational cohorts) or a single question (FINRISK). A variant located in an intron of UST, uronyl-2-sulfotransferase (rs13219957), gave the strongest statistical evidence in the initial genome-wide study (P = 1.55 × 10(-7)), and was associated with job-related exhaustion in all the replication sets (P < 0.05; P = 6.75 × 10(-7) from the meta-analysis). Consistent with studies of mood disorders, individual common genetic variants did not have any strong effect on job-related exhaustion. However, the nominally significant signals from the allelic variant of UST in four separate samples suggest that this variant might be a weak risk factor for job-related exhaustion. Together with the previously reported associations of other dermatan/chondroitin sulfate genes with mood disorders, these results indicate a potential molecular pathway for stress-related traits and mark a candidate region for further studies of job-related and general exhaustion.