Association of the functional V158M catechol-O-methyl-transferase polymorphism with panic disorder in women

Panic disorder is an anxiety disorder with an estimated heritability of up to 48%. Pharmacological and genetic studies suggest that genes coding for proteins involved in the catecholaminergic system might be relevant for the pathogenesis of the disease. In the present study, we genotyped a single nu...

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Published in:	The international journal of neuropsychopharmacology 2004-06, Vol.7 (2), p.183-188
Main Authors:	Domschke, Katharina, Freitag, Christine M., Kuhlenbäumer, Gregor, Schirmacher, Anja, Sand, Philipp, Nyhuis, Peter, Jacob, Christian, Fritze, Jürgen, Franke, Petra, Rietschel, Marcella, Garritsen, Henk S., Fimmers, Rolf, Nöthen, Markus M., Lesch, Klaus-Peter, Stögbauer, Florian, Deckert, Jürgen
Format:	Article
Language:	eng
Subjects:	Adult Agoraphobia - psychology Alleles Brief Reports Catechol O-Methyltransferase - genetics DNA Primers Female Gene Frequency Genotype Humans Male Panic Disorder - enzymology Panic Disorder - genetics Panic Disorder - psychology Polymorphism, Genetic - genetics Psychiatric Status Rating Scales Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction
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Summary:	Panic disorder is an anxiety disorder with an estimated heritability of up to 48%. Pharmacological and genetic studies suggest that genes coding for proteins involved in the catecholaminergic system might be relevant for the pathogenesis of the disease. In the present study, we genotyped a single nucleotide polymorphism (472G/A=V158M) in the coding region of the catechol-O-methyl-transferase (COMT) gene in 115 patients with panic disorder and age- and sex-matched controls. Association analysis revealed a significant excess of the more active COMT allele (472G=V158) in patients with panic disorder (p=0.04), particularly in female patients (p=0.01), but not in male patients (p=1.0). The assessment of a possible interaction of the COMT polymorphism with a previously reported functional 30-bp VNTR in the monoamine oxidase A promoter (MAOA–LPR) in female patients did not yield significant results. Our data support a role of the 472G/A (V158M) COMT polymorphism or a nearby locus in the pathogenesis of panic disorder in women.
ISSN:	1461-1457 1469-5111