title: Association between the DRD2 A1 allele and opium addiction in the Iranian population.
abstract: Dysfunction of the central dopaminergic neurotransmission has been suggested to play an important role in the etiology of certain neuropsychiatric disorders such as drug abuse. It has been shown that the dopamine D2 receptor (DRD2) gene dysfunction is associated with multi-drug addiction. Addiction to opium is the most common form of drug abuse in Iran. We studied the allelic association between DRD2 Taq I A polymorphism in 100 opium-dependent Iranian patients and 130 unrelated controls. A 310 bp (base pair) region surrounding Taq I site at the DRD2 locus was amplified by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and the PCR product was incubated with Taq I restriction enzyme. The A1 allele remained intact while the A2 allele was cut. Significant association was observed between A1 allele and addiction in the patients group (P < 0.0001). Moreover, the frequency of A1A1 genotype was significantly higher in opium users than controls (P < 0.0001). Our result indicates that DRD2 might be involved in the pathophysiology of opium addiction.
authors.affiliation: Genetics Research Center, The Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences University, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Maria
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Shahmoradgoli Najafabadi
authors.forename: Mina
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ohadi
authors.forename: Mohammad Taghi
authors.initials: MT
authors.lastname: Joghataie
authors.forename: Faraz
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Valaie
authors.forename: Yasser
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Riazalhosseini
authors.forename: Hamid
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Mostafavi
authors.forename: Fariba
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Mohammadbeigi
authors.forename: Hossein
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Najmabadi
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000483:Alleles; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D004247:DNA / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D015252:Deoxyribonucleases, Type II Site-Specific / Q000378:metabolism; D005787:Gene Frequency; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D007492:Iran; D008297:Male; D009892:Opium; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic; D017448:Receptors, Dopamine D2 / Q000235:genetics*; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000235:genetics* / Q000473:pathology
chemical_list: D017448:Receptors, Dopamine D2; D009892:Opium; D004247:DNA; D015252:Deoxyribonucleases, Type II Site-Specific; C027046:TCGA-specific type II deoxyribonucleases