Association study of Catechol-O-Methyltransferase (COMT) rs4680 Val158Met gene polymorphism and suicide attempt in Mexican adolescents with major depressive disorder

Abstract

Aim

We analyzed the association between SLC6A4, DRD2, COMT and MAOA genes and suicide attempt (SA) in Mexican adolescent patients with major depressive disorder (MDD).

Methods

The sample included 197 adolescents (127 females and 70 males) with principal diagnosis of MDD. Among them, 63 patients had SA at least once and 134 had not SA. The mean age of patients with and without SA was 15 ± 1.4 and 14 ± 1.5 years, respectively. We analyzed the genotype and allele distribution between patients with and without SA of SLC6A4 (5HTTLPR/rs25531), DRD2 (rs6275), COMT (rs4680), and MAOA (uVNTR).

Results

We did not find genotype or allele association between SA and SLC6A4 (χ²=0.67, p = 0.71; χ²=0.07, p = 0.77, respectively), DRD2 (χ²=0.05, p = 0.97; χ²=0.003, p = 0.95), and MAOA (females: χ²=0.86, p = 0.64; χ²=0, p = 1/males: χ²=0.008, p = 0.92) genes. However, there were differences in genotype frequencies of COMT/rs4680 between patients with SA and without SA (χ²=11.17, p = 0.003). Also, we observed a high frequency of Met158 allele showing an increased risk of having presented at least one SA (χ²=10.6, p = 0.001; OR = 1.43; 95% CI, 1.17–1.74).

Conclusions

Our findings showed an association between low activity genotype and allele of Val158Met polymorphism of COMT gene and SA in Mexican adolescents with MDD.

Keywords:

• Suicide attempt
• rs4680
• Val158Met
• COMT

Acknowledgments

The authors thank the patients and families who participated in this study.

Author contributions

MASJ wrote the manuscript, participated in the genotyping and carried out the statistical analysis. SHM and AAG participated in the genotyping analyses. EISH and REUF carried out the clinical evaluation of the patients. AJA revised the study. BCM designed the study and participated in the manuscript writing. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Disclosure statement

The authors have no conflict of interest.

Additional information

Funding

The study was funded by Instituto Nacional de Psiquiatría Ramón de la Fuente Muñiz.

Notes on contributors

Marco Antonio Sanabrais-Jiménez

MASJ: 8 years of experience in genetic of suicidal behavior. Investigator assistant of Pharmacogenetics Department in INPRFM since 2018.

Alejandro Aguilar-García

AAG: More than 15 years of experience in psychiatric genetics in INPRFM.

Sandra Hernández-Muñoz

SHM: More than 15 years of experience in psychiatric genetics in INPRFM.

Emmanuel Sarmiento

ES: Psychiatrist with subspecialty in pedopsychiatry. He is director of the HPIJNN.

Rosa E. Ulloa

REU: Psychiatrist with subspecialty in pedopsychiatry in HPIJNN.

Anabel Jiménez-Anguiano

AJA: Professor / Senior Research of Reproduction Biology Department in UAMI.

Beatriz Camarena

BC: More than 20 years of experience in psychiatric genetics in INPRFM. She is Chief of Pharmacogenetics Department in INPRFM.