Association between T-182C, G1287A polymorphism in NET gene and suicidality in major depressive disorder in Chinese patients.

Objective: Previous studies have implicated norepinephrine transporter gene (NET) polymorphisms in the etiology of major depressive disorder (MDD). A functional NET T-182C polymorphism (rs2242446) in the promoter region and a synonymous polymorphisms G1287A in the exon 9 (rs5569) were associated with MDD in different populations. However, few studies have focused on the relationship between these polymorphisms and MDD patients with suicidality. The objective of the present study was to examine whether the two polymorphisms are associated with MDD patients with suicidality in the Han Chinese population. Methods: Two hundred and sixty-three suicidal depressed patients and 241 non-suicidal depressed patients who met DSM-IV criteria for MDD were recruited from our hospital. Three hundred and three unrelated, age- and sex-matched healthy control subjects participated in this case-control study. Suicidality was assessed using Mini International Neuropsychiatric Interview (MINI) and the Hamilton rating scale for depression (HAMD). Genotypes of T-182C polymorphism (rs2242446) and G1287A (rs5569) were screened by polymerase chain reaction. Results: No statistical significant differences between patients and controls were found for any of the analysed polymorphisms, either in the genotype or allele distribution. Conclusions: Our results suggest that the investigated polymorphisms are not major susceptibility factors in the etiology of MDD with suicidality. However, the results must be verified in larger samples and different ethnicities.

The relationship between single nucleotide polymorphisms in 5-HT2A signal transduction-related genes and the response efficacy to selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor treatments in Chinese patients with major depressive disorder.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the possible relationship between six single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) (rs6311 and rs6305 of 5-HT2A, rs5443 of Gß3, rs2230739 of ACDY9, rs1549870 of PDE1A and rs255163 of CREB1, which are all related with 5-HT2A the signal transduction pathway) and the response efficacy to selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) treatments in major depressive disorder (MDD) Chinese. METHODS: This study included 194 depressed patients to investigate the influence of 6 polymorphisms in 5-HT2A signal transduction-related genes on the efficacy of SSRIs assessed over 1 year. The efficacies of SSRIs on 194 MDD patients were evaluated in an 8-week open-trial study. Over 1 year, a follow-up study was completed for 174 of them to observe the long-term efficacy of SSRIs. The optimal-scaling regression analysis was used for testing the relationship between the different genotypes of five SNPs and the efficacy in MDD. RESULTS: It showed that the patients with rs5443TT and rs2230739GG have a relatively good efficacy in response to short-term SSRIs. We also found that good efficacy appeared in depressed patients with rs2230739GG in response to long-term SSRIs. CONCLUSIONS: It suggested that different genotypes of rs5443 and rs2230739 might influence the signal transduction pathways of second message and affect therapeutic efficacy.