The monoamine oxidase-A gene and major psychosis in Japanese subjects.
BACKGROUND
Monoamine oxidase (MAO) is a critical enzyme in deamination of biogenic amines and may be involved in the pathophysiology of major psychosis, including mood disorder and schizophrenia. Recently, evidence for genetic association between the MAO-A gene and bipolar mood disorder was obtained in Caucasians.


METHODS
We investigated the polymorphisms of the MAO-A gene, which may be related to enzyme activity (T/941/G, A/1609/G), with amino-acid change (A/1609/G), in Japanese patients with bipolar disorder patients (n = 132), unipolar major depression (n = 43), or schizophrenia (n = 95), and controls (n = 169).


RESULTS
No difference in the allele frequencies or genotype distribution of the T/941/G variation was observed between any disease group and the control group. As for the A/1609/G variation, no G allele was found in the Japanese subjects.


CONCLUSIONS
No evidence for the genetic association between the MAO-A gene and major psychosis was obtained in the Japanese subjects.
Sasaki
T
T
Department of Psychiatry, Teikyo University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan.
Hattori
M
M
Sakai
T
T
Kato
T
T
Kunugi
H
H
Hirose
T
T
Nanko
S
S
D000328:Adult; D000483:Alleles; D044466:Asian People / Q000235:genetics; D001714:Bipolar Disorder / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics; D005260:Female; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D008995:Monoamine Oxidase / Q000235:genetics*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic / Q000235:genetics; D011618:Psychotic Disorders / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000235:genetics; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000201:enzymology / Q000235:genetics
D008995:Monoamine Oxidase