Abstract
Anorexia nervosa (AN) is a common, severe and disabling psychiatric disorder, characterized by profound weight loss and body image disturbance.1 Family and twin studies indicate a significant genetic contribution2,3 and pharmacological data suggest possible dysfunction of the serotonergic4,5 and dopaminergic6–9pathways. Catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) is a candidate gene for mediating susceptibility to AN since it is involved in the dopamine catabolism10 and because its functional polymorphism (Val/Met 158) determines high (H) and low (L) enzymatic activity alleles.11 Fifty-one Israeli AN patients and their parents were genotyped with the COMT polymorphism. Using the haplotype relative risk (HRR) method it was found that the frequency of the H allele among alleles transmitted to AN patients from their parents was significantly higher than in those not transmitted (68% vs 51% χ2 = 5.20, df = 1, P = 0.023, odds ratio: 2.01). Transmission disequilibrium test (TDT) revealed that out of 49 heterozygote parents the H allele was transmitted to AN patients 33 times while the L allele was transmitted only 16 (McNemar's χ2 = 5.90, df = 1, P = 0.015). Our study suggests that the COMT gene is associated with genetic susceptibility to AN, and that individuals homozygous for the high activity allele (HH) have a two-fold increased risk for development of the disorder.
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Acknowledgements
This study was supported by grants (42-97) from the National Institute for Psychobiology in Israel and (610-212.02) from the German–Israeli Foundation for scientific research and development (GIF).
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Frisch, A., Laufer, N., Danziger, Y. et al. Association of anorexia nervosa with the high activity allele of the COMT gene: a family-based study in Israeli patients. Mol Psychiatry 6, 243–245 (2001). https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.mp.4000830
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/sj.mp.4000830