COMT Haplotypes, Catecholamine Metabolites in Plasma and Clinical Response in Schizophrenic and Bipolar Patients

Abstract

Aim: We examined the association of COMT haplotypes and plasma metabolites of catecholamines in relation to the clinical response to antipsychotics in schizophrenic and bipolar patients. Patients & methods: We studied 165 patients before and after four weeks of treatment, and 163 healthy controls. We assessed four COMT haplotypes and the plasma concentrations of HVA, DOPAC and MHPG. Results: Bipolar patients: haplotypes are associated with age at onset and clinical evolution. In schizophrenic patients, an haplotype previously associated with increased risk, is related to better response of negative symptoms. Conclusion: Haplotypes would be good indicators of the clinical status and the treatment response in bipolar and schizophrenic patients. Larger studies are required to elucidate the clinical usefulness of these findings.

Keywords::

• antipsychotics
• bipolar disorder
• COMT
• haplotypes
• plasma metabolites
• schizophrenia
• symptomatology

Financial & competing interests disclosure

The project was supported by grant number PI0901714 from the Fondo de Investigación Sanitaria and FEDER Founds. Translation and editing was supported by the University of the Basque Country, Group of Integrative Research in Mental Health. The authors thank Fernando Lázaro for his advice in the process of manuscript preparation. The authors have no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed.

No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.

Ethical conduct of research

The authors state that they have obtained appropriate institutional review board approval or have followed the principles outlined in the Declaration of Helsinki for all human or animal experimental investigations. In addition, for investigations involving human subjects, informed consent has been obtained from the participants involved.

Additional information

Funding

The project was supported by grant number PI0901714 from the Fondo de Investigación Sanitaria and FEDER Founds. Translation and editing was supported by the University of the Basque Country, Group of Integrative Research in Mental Health. The authors thank Fernando Lázaro for his advice in the process of manuscript preparation. The authors have no other relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript apart from those disclosed. No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.