LACK OF ASSOCIATION OF CATECHOL-OMETHYLTRANSFERASE GENE POLYMORPHISM IN OBSESSIVE–COMPULSIVE DISORDER

Erdal, Mehmet Emin | Acar, Şenel | Yazıcı, Mustafa Kemal | Yazıcı, Aylin Ertekin | Eker, Ebru Derici

The COMT gene has been implicated to be involved in the pathogenesis of obsessive–compulsive disorder (OCD) and various other psychiatric disorders. COMTenzyme activity is governed by a common genetic polymorphism at codon 158 that results in substantial 3- to 4-fold variation in enzymatic activity [a high-activity COMT variant (H) and a low activity variant (L)]. This study evaluates the association between OCD and the COMT gene polymorphism. Fifty-nine OCD patients that were diagnosed according to DSM-IV criteria and 114 healthy control subjects were included in the study. PCR technique was used for molecular analysis. The genotypic pattern of distribution of the COMT gene (H/H, H/L, and L/L genotypes) was not different between the OCD patients and controls. There were no significant dif...