Association between Tardive Dyskinesia and 267C/T Polymorphism of 5-HT6 Receptor Gene in Schizophrenia

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: Tardive dyskinesia(TD) is a serious side effect associated with long-term antipsychotic treatments. Some candidate genetic polymorphisms were reported to be associated with TD and possible involvement of serotonergic receptors in the pathophysiology of TD has been suggested. In the present study, we investigated the association between 5-HT6 receptor gene polymorphism and TD with schizophrenia. METHODS: To investigate the relationship between 5-HT6 receptor gene polymorphism and TD, 60 patients with TD were compared with 60 patients without TD. The 267C/T allele of 5-HT6 receptor gene was genotyped by means of polymerase chain reaction method. TD was evaluated using the Abnormal Involuntary Movement Scale(AIMS). RESULTS: The patients with the three 267C/T genotype showed no significant differences in age, gender, and duration of illness. No significant difference in genotype frequencies was observed between schizophrenic patients with and without TD. In addition, there was no difference in allele frequencies. Further analysis with an measure of AIMS scores showed that these scores were not significantly influenced by the 5-HT6 receptor gene polymorphism. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that 267C/T polymorphism of 5-HT6 receptor gene is not significantly associated with susceptibility to TD in schizophrenia.