BACKGROUND: Structural brain anomalies are present at early phases of psychosis. The objective was to examine the impact of Catechol-O-Methyltransferase (COMT) gene variations on brain morphology in first-episode non-affective psychosis. We hypothesized that the low activity-COMT (COMT(L)) allele would be associated with the presence of structural brain changes as assessed by quantitative magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). METHODS: Fifty-two males and 23 females underwent COMT genotyping and MRI. Patients were categorized into three genetic subgroups: COMT(H/H), COMT(L/H) and COMT(L/L). MRI data were analyzed using BRAINS2. Global and lobar volumes of grey matter (GM) and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) were compared among the three groups after controlling for total intracranial volume and age of illness onset. RESULTS: COMT(L) carriers showed a significant enlargement of the lateral ventricles (F = 7.13, p = 0.009), right lateral ventricle (F = 5.99, p = 0.017) and left lateral ventricle (F = 6.22, p = 0.015). No other significant differences in any of the brain structures were found among subgroups. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that genetic variations of COMT can contribute to the enlargement of the lateral ventricles described in early phases of non-affective psychosis.
BACKGROUND:Structural brain anomalies are present at early phases of psychosis. The objective was to examine the impact of Catechol-O-Methyltransferase (COMT) gene variations on brain morphology in first-episode non-affective psychosis. We hypothesized that the low activity-COMT (COMT(L)) allele would be associated with the presence of structural brain changes as assessed by quantitative magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). METHODS: Fifty-two males and 23 females underwent COMT genotyping and MRI. Patients were categorized into three genetic subgroups: COMT(H/H), COMT(L/H) and COMT(L/L). MRI data were analyzed using BRAINS2. Global and lobar volumes of grey matter (GM) and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) were compared among the three groups after controlling for total intracranial volume and age of illness onset. RESULTS:COMT(L) carriers showed a significant enlargement of the lateral ventricles (F = 7.13, p = 0.009), right lateral ventricle (F = 5.99, p = 0.017) and left lateral ventricle (F = 6.22, p = 0.015). No other significant differences in any of the brain structures were found among subgroups. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings suggest that genetic variations of COMT can contribute to the enlargement of the lateral ventricles described in early phases of non-affective psychosis.
Authors: William S Kremen; Matthew S Panizzon; Michael C Neale; Christine Fennema-Notestine; Elizabeth Prom-Wormley; Lisa T Eyler; Allison Stevens; Carol E Franz; Michael J Lyons; Michael D Grant; Amy J Jak; Terry L Jernigan; Hong Xian; Bruce Fischl; Heidi W Thermenos; Larry J Seidman; Ming T Tsuang; Anders M Dale Journal: Neurobiol Aging Date: 2010-04-03 Impact factor: 4.673
Authors: Erin E Edmiston; Fei Wang; Jessica H Kalmar; Fay Y Womer; Lara G Chepenik; Brian Pittman; Ralitza Gueorguieva; Esther Hur; Linda Spencer; Lawrence H Staib; R Todd Constable; Robert K Fulbright; Xenophon Papademetris; Hilary P Blumberg Journal: Psychiatry Res Date: 2011-10-30 Impact factor: 3.222
Authors: Casey E Krueger; David L Dean; Howard J Rosen; Cathra Halabi; Michael Weiner; Bruce L Miller; Joel H Kramer Journal: Alzheimer Dis Assoc Disord Date: 2010 Jan-Mar Impact factor: 2.703
Authors: Dina Vojinovic; Hieab H Adams; Xueqiu Jian; Qiong Yang; Albert Vernon Smith; Joshua C Bis; Alexander Teumer; Markus Scholz; Nicola J Armstrong; Edith Hofer; Yasaman Saba; Michelle Luciano; Manon Bernard; Stella Trompet; Jingyun Yang; Nathan A Gillespie; Sven J van der Lee; Alexander Neumann; Shahzad Ahmad; Ole A Andreassen; David Ames; Najaf Amin; Konstantinos Arfanakis; Mark E Bastin; Diane M Becker; Alexa S Beiser; Frauke Beyer; Henry Brodaty; R Nick Bryan; Robin Bülow; Anders M Dale; Philip L De Jager; Ian J Deary; Charles DeCarli; Debra A Fleischman; Rebecca F Gottesman; Jeroen van der Grond; Vilmundur Gudnason; Tamara B Harris; Georg Homuth; David S Knopman; John B Kwok; Cora E Lewis; Shuo Li; Markus Loeffler; Oscar L Lopez; Pauline Maillard; Hanan El Marroun; Karen A Mather; Thomas H Mosley; Ryan L Muetzel; Matthias Nauck; Paul A Nyquist; Matthew S Panizzon; Zdenka Pausova; Bruce M Psaty; Ken Rice; Jerome I Rotter; Natalie Royle; Claudia L Satizabal; Reinhold Schmidt; Peter R Schofield; Pamela J Schreiner; Stephen Sidney; David J Stott; Anbupalam Thalamuthu; Andre G Uitterlinden; Maria C Valdés Hernández; Meike W Vernooij; Wei Wen; Tonya White; A Veronica Witte; Katharina Wittfeld; Margaret J Wright; Lisa R Yanek; Henning Tiemeier; William S Kremen; David A Bennett; J Wouter Jukema; Tomas Paus; Joanna M Wardlaw; Helena Schmidt; Perminder S Sachdev; Arno Villringer; Hans Jörgen Grabe; W T Longstreth; Cornelia M van Duijn; Lenore J Launer; Sudha Seshadri; M Arfan Ikram; Myriam Fornage Journal: Nat Commun Date: 2018-09-26 Impact factor: 14.919