title: Meta-Analysis of the COMT Val158Met Polymorphism in Major Depressive Disorder: Effect of Ethnicity.
abstract: The COMT (catechol-O-methyltransferase) Val158Met polymorphism (rs4680) is a potential susceptibility variant for major depressive disorder (MDD). Although many genetic studies have examined the association between MDD and this polymorphism, the results were inconclusive. In the present study, we conducted a series of meta-analyses of samples consisting of 2905 MDD cases and 2403 controls with the goal of determining whether this variant indeed has any effect on MDD. We revealed a significant association in the comparison of Val/Val + Val/Met vs. Met/Met (OR =1.180; 95 % CI = 1.019, 1.367; P = 0.027), Val/Met vs. Val/Val (OR =1.18; 95 % CI = 1.038, 1.361; P = 0.013), and Val/Met vs. Met/Met (OR =1.229; 95 % CI = 1.053, 1.435; P = 0.009). Further meta-analyses of samples with European ancestry demonstrated a significant association of this SNP with MDD susceptibility in Val/Val + Val/Met vs. Met/Met (OR =1.231, 95 % CI = 1.046, 1.449; P = 0.013) and Val/Met vs. Met/Met (OR =1.284, 95 % CI = 1.050, 1.484; P = 0.012). For the samples with East Asian ancestry, we found a significant association in both allelic (Val vs. Met: OR =0.835; 95 % CI = 0.714, 0.975; P = 0.023) and genotypic (Met/Met + Val/Met vs. Val/Val: OR =1.431, 95 % CI = 1.143, 1.791; P = 0.002; Val/Met vs. Val/Val: OR =1.482, 95 % CI = 1.171, 1.871; P = 0.001) analyses. No evidence of heterogeneity among studies or publication bias was observed. Together, our results indicate that the COMT Val158Met polymorphism is a vulnerability factor for MDD with distinct effects in different ethnic populations.
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, The First Affiliated Hospital, Collaborative Innovation Center for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China.
authors.forename: Maiqiu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, The First Affiliated Hospital, Collaborative Innovation Center for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China.
authors.forename: Yunlong
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ma
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, The First Affiliated Hospital, Collaborative Innovation Center for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China.
authors.forename: Wenji
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Yuan
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, The First Affiliated Hospital, Collaborative Innovation Center for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China.
authors.forename: Kunkai
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Su
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, The First Affiliated Hospital, Collaborative Innovation Center for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China. limd586@outlook.com.|Air Center for Air Pollution and Health, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China. limd586@outlook.com.|Department of Psychiatry and Neurobehavioral Sciences, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA. limd586@outlook.com.
authors.forename: Ming D
authors.initials: MD
authors.lastname: Li
mesh_terms: D016022:Case-Control Studies; D002394:Catechol O-Methyltransferase / Q000235:genetics*; D003865:Major Depressive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000235:genetics*; D005006:Ethnicity / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D008715:Methionine / Q000235:genetics*; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide / Q000235:genetics*; D014633:Valine / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D008715:Methionine; C588010:COMT protein, human; D002394:Catechol O-Methyltransferase; D014633:Valine
keywords: Catechol-O-methyltransferase; Ethnicity; Major depressive disorder; Polymorphism