P.3.b.037 - Gene polymorphism of serotonin receptors and drug-induced hyperprolactinemia in schizophrenic patients

Abstract

Background: Antipsychotics have been used for more than 50 years in the treatment of schizophrenia and many other psychiatric disorders. Schizophrenic patients have to take antipsychotic medication for a long time, often throughout the life [1]. Hyper prolactinemia in these patients is a common and serious side effect of therapy with atypical antipsychotics. Genes coding for serotonin receptors are considered as candidate genes responsible for the particular antipsychotic effects of neuroleptics [2]. The present study aimed to investigate the role of polymorphisms of the serotonin receptors genes (HTR1A, HTR1B, HTR2A, HTR2C, HTR3A, HTR3B, HTR6) in the pathogenesis of antipsychotic-induced hyperprolactinemia in patients with schizophrenia. Methods: 446 Russian patients with schizophrenia were examined, including 225 women and 221 men. The average age of patients was 42.1±1.4 years. Evaluation of serum prolactin performed by ELISA using reagents set PRL Test System (USA). Genotyping was carried out on 29 polymorphic variants of the serotonin receptor genes HTR1A (rs6295, rs1364043, rs10042486, rs1800042, rs749099), HTR1B (rs6298, rs6296, rs130058), HTR2A (rs6311, rs6313, rs6314, rs7997012, rs1928040, rs9316233, rs2224721, rs6312), HTR2C (rs6318, rs5946189, rs569959, rs17326429, rs4911871, rs3813929, rs1801412, rs12858300), HTR3A (rs1062613, rs33940208, rs1176713), HTR3B (rs1176744) and HTR6 (rs1805054). The SPSS software was used for statistical analysis. The Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium (HWE) of genotypic frequencies was tested by the chi-square test. Results: We studied the association between polymorphisms of relevant 5-HT receptor genes and antipsychotic drug-induced hyperprolactinemia in patients with schizophrenia from Siberia. All patients with schizophrenia were divided into two groups: those with and without hyperprolactinemia. Statistically significant results were obtained for polymorphic variants of the genes rs6312 HTR2A (χ2 = 4.685; p = 0.030), rs12858300 HTR2C, rs569959 HTR2C, which suggests the participation of these polymorphic variants in the development of hyperprolactinemia. When men and women were studied separately, only rs569959 HTR2C (χ2 = 6.284; p = 0.043) in men reached the nominal significance threshold. This finding is probably related to the X-bound character of HTR2C (i.e., men are hemizygotes). Also, we found a statistically significant association rs12858300 HTR2C (χ2 = 9.429; p = 0.002) in the female group. We did not find statistically significant association for other polymorphisms HTR1A (rs6295, rs1364043, rs10042486, rs1800042, rs749099), HTR1B (rs6298, rs6296, rs130058), HTR2A (rs6311, rs6313, rs6314, rs7997012, rs1928040, rs9316233, rs2224721), HTR2C (rs6318, rs5946189, rs17326429, rs4911871, rs3813929, rs1801412), HTR3A (rs1062613, rs33940208, rs1176713), HTR3B (rs1176744) and HTR6 (rs1805054). Though hyperprolactinemia is primarily attributed to blockade of DRD2 in the pituitary gland, the secretion of prolactin is also modulated by 5-HT. The involvement of the HTR1A, HTR2A, HTR2C, and HTR3 in the serotonergic-induced prolactin response is well documented. Conclusion: Our results indicate that genetic variants of HTR2C may have functional consequences on the modulation of prolactin secretion. Further search for genetic markers associated with the development of side effects of neuroleptic therapy, will contribute to the development of effective methods of diagnosis, correction and treatment of disease, as well as of adherence of patients with mental disorders to psychotropic therapy.