Serotonin pathway polymorphisms and the treatment of major depressive disorder and anxiety disorders.
While antidepressants are widely used to treat major depressive disorder and anxiety disorders, only half of the patients will respond to antidepressant treatment and only a third of patients will experience a remission of symptoms. Identification of genetic biomarkers that predict antidepressant treatment response could thus greatly improve current clinical practice by providing guidance on which drug to use for which patient. Most antidepressant drugs for the treatment of depression and anxiety disorders have effects on the serotonergic neurotransmitter system; thus, genetic polymorphisms in the genes involved in this pathway represent logical candidates for investigation. This article reviews recent findings on the pharmacogenetics of antidepressant drugs with a focus on serotonergic pathway polymorphisms and discusses future clinical applications.
Section on Clinical Genomics & Experimental Therapeutics (CGET), Laboratory of Clinical & Translational Studies (LCTS), National Institute on Alcohol Abuse & Alcoholism (NIAAA), NIH, Bethesda, MD 20892-1540, USA.
Sarah G
SG
Helton
Falk W
FW
Lohoff
D014151:Anti-Anxiety Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000928:Antidepressive Agents / Q000493:pharmacokinetics / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001008:Anxiety Disorders / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000235:genetics*; D003865:Major Depressive Disorder / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic / Q000235:genetics*; D012701:Serotonin / Q000502:physiology*; D018490:Serotonin Agents / Q000493:pharmacokinetics / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D050486:Serotonin Plasma Membrane Transport Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D015398:Signal Transduction / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology*
D014151:Anti-Anxiety Agents; D000928:Antidepressive Agents; D018490:Serotonin Agents; D050486:Serotonin Plasma Membrane Transport Proteins; D012701:Serotonin
antidepressants; anxiety disorders; biomarker; genetics; pharmacogenetics; serotonin; treatment response