When it comes to making a marriage last, sometimes it takes more than just healthy communication.

A new study from Yale University found that married people who have a gene called GG genotype, which produces love hormone oxytocin, are more likely to report higher satisfaction in their marriages.

Researchers surveyed 178 married couples ages 37 to 90 years old. Participants were asked to take a survey about their marriages and turned in saliva samples for genotyping.

The study saw that when at least one person in the marriage had the GG genotype, OXTR rs53576, the couple was more likely to report higher levels of relationship satisfaction and security than couples with different genes.

“This study shows that how we feel in our close relationships is influenced by more than just our shared experiences with our partners over time,” Joan Monin, a professor of public health at Yale University and co-author of the study, wrote in a press release.

Meanwhile Monin noted that couples who did not have the GG genotype were more likely to have an anxious relationship style, i.e. insecurities from past relationships and family members which is associated with low self-esteem and high rejection sensitivity.

“In marriage, people are also influenced by their own and their partner’s genetic predispositions,” Monin said.

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