title: Association between serotonin transporter-linked polymorphic region and escitalopram antidepressant treatment response in Korean patients with major depressive disorder.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Various studies have shown that short (s)/long (l) polymorphisms of the serotonin transporter-linked polymorphic region (5-HTTLPR) might predict treatment outcome to selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the association between 5-HTTLPR and clinical response to escitalopram treatment in Korean subjects with major depressive disorder.
  
  
  METHODS
  One hundred and fifteen Korean patients diagnosed with major depressive disorder were evaluated during 8 weeks of escitalopram treatment at a dose of 5-20 mg/day. Patients were genotyped for 5-HTTLPR using polymerase chain reaction. Clinical symptoms were evaluated by the 21-item Hamilton Depression Rating (HAMD-21) scale during the 8 weeks of treatment.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Therapeutic response to antidepressant escitalopram was better in s allele carriers (ss, sl) than in l allele homozygotes (ll) at 8 weeks of treatment (OR = 6.24, p = 0.026). The proportion of s allele carriers in responders was higher than that in non-responders (96.6 vs. 85.7%). The percentile decline in HAMD-21 in s allele carriers (59.86 ± 3.23%) was larger than that in HAMD-21 in l allele homozygotes (43.13 ± 11.49%; p = 0.029). However, 5-HTTLPR genotypes were not significantly associated with remission (p > 0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Our results show that treatment response to escitalopram at 8 weeks was moderated by 5-HTTLPR, with better response rates for s allele carriers than for l allele homozygotes. Although the role of 5-HTTLPR as a definite predictor of selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor treatment response cannot be confirmed from current results, they do suggest a trend for better response in s allele carriers.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, College of Medicine, Korea University, Seoul, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Eun-Soo
authors.initials: ES
authors.lastname: Won
authors.forename: Hun-Soo
authors.initials: HS
authors.lastname: Chang
authors.forename: Hwa-Young
authors.initials: HY
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.forename: Byung-Joo
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Ham
authors.forename: Min-Soo
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Lee
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000483:Alleles; D044466:Asian People / Q000235:genetics*; D015283:Citalopram / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D003865:Major Depressive Disorder / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000235:genetics*; D005260:Female; D056726:Genetic Association Studies / Q000379:methods* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic / Q000235:genetics*; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D050486:Serotonin Plasma Membrane Transport Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D017367:Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors / Q000627:therapeutic use; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D015283:Citalopram; D050486:Serotonin Plasma Membrane Transport Proteins; D017367:Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors