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  • Title: A polymorphism (5-HTTLPR) in the serotonin transporter promoter gene is associated with DSM-IV depression subtypes in seasonal affective disorder.
    Author: Willeit M, Praschak-Rieder N, Neumeister A, Zill P, Leisch F, Stastny J, Hilger E, Thierry N, Konstantinidis A, Winkler D, Fuchs K, Sieghart W, Aschauer H, Ackenheil M, Bondy B, Kasper S.
    Journal: Mol Psychiatry; 2003 Nov; 8(11):942-6. PubMed ID: 14593433.
    Abstract:
    Serotonergic mechanisms are thought to play an important role in the pathogenesis of seasonal affective disorder (SAD). The expression of the serotonin transporter (5-HTT) is regulated in part by an insertion/deletion polymorphism in the serotonin transporter gene promoter region (5-HTTLPR). The 5-HTTLPR short allele (s) has been associated with anxiety-related personality traits and depression, and one study observed an association between the 5-HTTLPR s-allele and SAD and the trait of seasonality. We genotyped 138 SAD patients and 146 healthy volunteers with low seasonality for 5-HTTLPR. No difference between patients and controls was found for genotype distribution and s-allele frequency. However, genotype distribution and allele frequencies were strongly associated with DSM-IV depression subtypes. Melancholic depression was associated with the 5-HTTLPR long (l) allele and atypical depression with the 5-HTTLPR s-allele (two-sided Fisher's exact test: genotype distribution: P=0.0038; allele frequencies: P=0.007). Our data are compatible with the hypothesis of a disease process that is not causally related to 5-HTTLPR, but involves 5-HT neurotransmission and 5-HTTLPR somewhere on its way to phenotypic disease expression.
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