Gene expression studies in major depression.
The dramatic technical advances in methods to measure gene expression on a genome-wide level thus far have not been paralleled by breakthrough discoveries in psychiatric disorders-including major depression (MD)-using these hypothesis-free approaches. In this review, we first describe the methodologic advances made in gene expression analysis, from quantitative polymerase chain reaction to next-generation sequencing. We then discuss issues in gene expression experiments specific to MD, ranging from the choice of target tissues to the characterization of the case group. We provide a synopsis of the gene expression studies published thus far for MD, with a focus on studies using mRNA microarray methods. Finally, we discuss possible new strategies for the gene expression studies in MD that circumvent some of the addressed issues.
Mehta
Divya
D
Max-Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Kraepelinstr. 2-10, 80804 Munich, Germany.
Menke
Andreas
A
Binder
Elisabeth B
EB
D003865:Major Depressive Disorder / Q000235:genetics*; D015870:Gene Expression; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D006801:Humans; D020411:Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000235:genetics
D012333:RNA, Messenger