Genetic variability in the serotoninergic system and age of onset in anorexia nervosa and obsessive-compulsive disorder

Maria Teresa Plana; Teresa Torres; Natalia Rodríguez; Daniel Boloc; Patricia Gassó; Elena Moreno; Amalia Lafuente; Josefina Castro-Fornieles; Sergi Mas; Luisa Lazaro

doi:10.1016/j.psychres.2018.12.019

Genetic variability in the serotoninergic system and age of onset in anorexia nervosa and obsessive-compulsive disorder

Psychiatry Res. 2019 Jan:271:554-558. doi: 10.1016/j.psychres.2018.12.019. Epub 2018 Dec 6.

Authors

Affiliations

¹ Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychology, Institute of Neurosciences, Hospital Clinic de Barcelona, C/ Villarroel 170, E-08036 Barcelona, Spain. Electronic address: sergimash@ub.edu.
² Department of Clinical Foundations, Pharmacology Unit, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.
³ Department of Medicine, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain.
⁴ Department of Clinical Foundations, Pharmacology Unit, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain; The August Pi i Sunyer Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain.
⁵ Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychology, Institute of Neurosciences, Hospital Clinic de Barcelona, C/ Villarroel 170, E-08036 Barcelona, Spain.
⁶ Department of Clinical Foundations, Pharmacology Unit, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain; The August Pi i Sunyer Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain; Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental (CIBERSAM), Carlos III Health Institute, Spain.
⁷ Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychology, Institute of Neurosciences, Hospital Clinic de Barcelona, C/ Villarroel 170, E-08036 Barcelona, Spain; Department of Medicine, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain; The August Pi i Sunyer Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain; Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental (CIBERSAM), Carlos III Health Institute, Spain.
⁸ Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry and Psychology, Institute of Neurosciences, Hospital Clinic de Barcelona, C/ Villarroel 170, E-08036 Barcelona, Spain; Department of Medicine, University of Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain; The August Pi i Sunyer Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain; Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental (CIBERSAM), Carlos III Health Institute, Spain. Electronic address: llazaro@clinic.cat.

PMID: 30554102
DOI: 10.1016/j.psychres.2018.12.019

Abstract

The age of onset of some psychiatric disorders may have etiopathogenic and clinical effects and may influence outcome. Following on from previous work by our group where we showed that early onset anorexia nervosa (AN) and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) shared a common genetic background, the aim of the present study is to assess genetic pleiotropy related to the serotonergic system (SLC6A4, 5HTR2A, 5HTR2C, TPH2, SLC18A1), in a common phenotype such as very-early age of onset. One hundred and sixteen adolescents diagnosed with AN and 74 adolescents diagnosed with OCD participated in the present study. We confirmed the existence of a genetic overlap between OCD and AN. Specifically, we described genetic pleiotropy for age at onset across these disorders, associating two SNPs (rs6311, rs4942587) of the HTR2A with the very-early onset phenotype.

Keywords: Age of onset; Anorexia nervosa; Genetic pleiotropy; Obsessive-compulsive disorder; Serotonin: 5HTR2A; Single nucleotide polymorphisms.

MeSH terms

Adolescent
Age of Onset
Anorexia Nervosa / genetics*
Child
Female
Humans
Male
Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder / genetics*
Phenotype
Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide*
Serotonin Plasma Membrane Transport Proteins / genetics*
Tryptophan Hydroxylase / genetics*
Vesicular Monoamine Transport Proteins / genetics*

Substances

SLC18A1 protein, human
SLC6A4 protein, human
Serotonin Plasma Membrane Transport Proteins
Vesicular Monoamine Transport Proteins
TPH2 protein, human
Tryptophan Hydroxylase