The rs7208505 Polymorphism and Differential Expression of the SKA2 Gene in the Prefrontal Cortex of Suicide Victims from the Mexican Population

Abstract

Objective The main aim of the current study was to investigate whether SKA2 gene expression in the postmortem brain of rs7208505 genotype are altered in suicide victims from a Mexican population. Methods In this study, we report a genetic analysis of expression levels of the SKA2 gene in the prefrontal cortex of the postmortem brain of suicidal subjects (n = 22) compared to subjects who died of causes other than suicide (n = 22) in a Mexican population using RT-qPCR assays. Additionally, we genotyped the rs7208505 polymorphism in suicide victims (n = 98) and controls (n = 88) and we evaluate the association of genotypes for the SNP rs7208505 with expression level of SKA2. Results The results showed that the expression of the SKA2 gene was significantly higher in suicide victims compared to control subjects (p = 0.044). Interestingly, we observed a greater proportion of allele A of the rs7208505 in suicide victims than controls. Even though there was no association between the SNP with suicide in the study population we found a significative association of the expression level from SKA2 with the allele A of the rs7208505 and suicide. Conclusion The evidence suggests that the expression of SKA2 in the prefrontal cortex may be a critical factor in the etiology of suicidal behavior.