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Role of the COMT gene Val158Met polymorphism in mental disorders: A review

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 April 2020

Ladislav Hosák
Ladislav Hosák*
Affiliation:
Department of Psychiatry, Charles University in Prague, Faculty of Medicine in Hradec Králové, Czech Republic Department of Psychiatry, University Hospital Hradec Králové, Czech Republic
*
*Department of Psychiatry, University Hospital Hradec Králové, 500 05 Hradec Králové, Czech Republic. Tel.: +420 495 832 228; fax: +420 495 511 677. E-mail address: hosak@lfhk.cuni.cz
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Abstract

The Val158Met polymorphism of the COMT gene is functional, easily detectable, and significantly related to metabolism of catecholamines, which underlie pathogenesis of a significant number of mental disorders. Evidence for the role of this polymorphism in schizophrenia, substance dependence, bipolar disorder, obsessive-compulsive disorder, anorexia nervosa and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is summed up in this review article. The results make it unlikely that the COMT gene plays an important role in these mental disorders, although a minor effect can not be excluded. Future studies on the COMT gene in mentally ill subjects should be stratified by clinical subtypes of the disorder, gender and ethnicity. Studies of endophenotypes instead of the complex disorder seem to be another promising research strategy. Gene-gene and gene-environment interactions should also be considered. The COMT gene is probably not “a gene for” any mental disorder, but the Val158Met polymorphism appears to have pleiotropic effects on human behavior.

Keywords

COMT geneVal158Met polymorphismMental disordersPleiotropic effect
Type
Review
Information
European Psychiatry , Volume 22 , Issue 5 , July 2007 , pp. 276 - 281
Copyright
Copyright © Elsevier Masson SAS 2007

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