title: Polymorphism G861C of 5-HT receptor subtype 1B is associated with heroin dependence in Han Chinese.
abstract: The serotoninergic (5-HT) system regulates neuronal activity in broad brain regions, and appears to be particularly important for modulating behavioral and physiological functions such as mood, emotion, sleep and appetite. Central 5-HT deregulation may be involved in many neuropsychological disorders, which include substance abuse and addiction. Previous studies suggest that genetic polymorphisms in some 5-HT receptor genes may relate to heroin dependency. Here we examined potential association between heroin dependence and four single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of 5-HT receptors (A-1438G and T102C of HTR(2A), and G861C and A1180G of HTR(1B)) in a cohort of Han Chinese. Participants included 303 heroin-dependent subjects who were recruited into the Methadone Maintenance Treatment (MMT) Program in the Xi'an Mental Health Center, and 300 healthy controls. The resulting data yielded a significantly higher frequency of the HTR(1B) G allele with G861C among the heroin-dependent subjects relative to controls (p=0.001 after Bonferroni correction). Further genotype and clinical phenotype correlation study of the G861C carriers showed that the amount of heroin self-injection was higher in patients with the GG genotype relative to CC and CG genotypes (p<0.01). These findings point to a role for HTR(1B) polymorphism in heroin dependence among Han Chinese, and may be informative for future genetic or neurobiological studies on heroin dependence.
authors.affiliation: Department of Forensic Science, School of Medicine, Xi'an Jiaotong University/Key Laboratory of Ministry of Public Health for Forensic Science, Xi'an 710061, Shannxi, PR China.
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Gao
authors.forename: Y S
authors.initials: YS
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.forename: S G
authors.initials: SG
authors.lastname: Wei
authors.forename: S B
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: Li
authors.forename: J H
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Lai
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D044466:Asian People; D002681:China; D006556:Heroin Dependence / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic; D044302:Receptor, Serotonin, 5-HT1B / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D044302:Receptor, Serotonin, 5-HT1B