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Open AccessA genome-wide association study identifies two novel susceptibility loci and trans population polygenicity associated with bipolar disorder
Genome-wide association studies (GWASs) have identified several susceptibility loci for bipolar disorder (BD) and shown that the genetic architecture of BD can be explained by polygenicity, with numerous varia...
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Article
Possible association of CUX1 gene polymorphisms with antidepressant response in major depressive disorder
Association between response to antidepressant treatment and genetic polymorphisms was examined in two independent Japanese samples of patients with major depressive disorder (MDD). Genome-wide approach using ...
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Article
Open Access13C-phenylalanine breath test detects altered phenylalanine kinetics in schizophrenia patients
Phenylalanine is an essential amino acid required for the synthesis of catecholamines including dopamine. Altered levels of phenylalanine and its metabolites in blood and cerebrospinal fluid have been reported...
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Article
Plasma levels of vascular endothelial growth factor and fibroblast growth factor 2 in patients with major depressive disorders
We investigated the plasma levels of VEGF and FGF-2, important factors for regulation of neuroplasticity such as neurogenesis, in patients in remission from major depressive disorders (MDD). The plasma VEGF le...
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Article
Pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating polypeptide is associated with schizophrenia
Pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating polypeptide (PACAP, ADCYAP1: adenylate cyclase-activating polypeptide 1), a neuropeptide with neurotransmission modulating activity, is a promising schizophrenia candidat...
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Article
The possible association between epigenetic aberration in DNA methylation in RELN and psychiatric disorders
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Epigenetic aberration of the human REELIN gene in psychiatric disorders
Epigenetic genome modifications such as DNA methylation appear to be involved in various diseases. Here, we suggest that the levels of DNA methylation at the BssHII methylation-sensitive restriction enzyme sites ...
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Article
Possible association between nonsynonymous polymorphisms of the anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) gene and schizophrenia in a Japanese population
We examined, for the first time, the possible association between schizophrenia and the anaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) gene which plays an important role in neurodevelopment. When two nonsynonymous polymorph...
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Article
Effect of antipsychotic drugs on DISC1 and dysbindin expression in mouse frontal cortex and hippocampus
Altered expression of Disrupted-In-Schizophrenia-1 (DISC1) and dysbindin (DTNBP1), susceptibility genes for schizophrenia, in schizophrenic brain has been reported; however, the possible effect of antipsychoti...
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Article
A complex polymorphic region in the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) gene confers susceptibility to bipolar disorder and affects transcriptional activity
Previous studies have suggested that genetic variations in the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) gene may be associated with several neuropsychiatric diseases including bipolar disorder. The present stu...
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Article
Association study of the frizzled-3 (FZD3) gene with schizophrenia and mood disorders
Two research groups have recently reported a significant association between schizophrenia and genetic variants of Frizzled-3 (FZD3) gene. We examined a possible association in a Japanese sample of schizophren...
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Article
Association analysis of the −308G > A promoter polymorphism of the tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) gene in Japanese patients with schizophrenia
Two research groups have thus far reported a significant association between schizophrenia and a promoter polymorphism (−308G > A) of the gene encoding tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), while contradictive ...
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Article
Association study of C825T polymorphism of the G-protein b3 subunit gene with schizophrenia and mood disorders
Alterations of G proteins have been implicated in major psychiatric illnesses. A C825T polymorphism of a gene encoding the β3 subunit of heterotrimeric G proteins (GNB3) was reported to be associated with sev...
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Article
Exon/intron boundaries, novel polymorphisms, and association analysis with schizophrenia of the human synaptic vesicle monoamine transporter (SVMT) gene
The synaptic vesicular monoamine transporter (SVMT), alternatively vesicular monoamine transporter 2 (VMAT2), pumps cytosolic monoamines including dopamine, norepinephrine, serotonin, and histamine into synapt...
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Article
A novel polymorphism of the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) gene associated with late-onset Alzheimer's disease
Several lines of evidence have suggested altered functions of the brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer's disease (AD). In the search fo...
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Article
No evidence for an association between the Glu298Asp polymorphism of the NOS3 gene and Alzheimer's disease
Recently a significant association of a missense mutation (Glu298Asp) of the endothelial nitric oxide synthase (NOS3) gene with late-onset Alzheimer's disease (LOAD) was reported. We tried to replicate this f...
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A functional polymorphism in the promoter region of monoamine oxidase-A gene and mood disorders
A polymorphism of a variable number tandem repeat (VNTR), that was recently found in the promoter region of the monoamine oxidase-A (MAOA) gene, was shown to be associated with its transcriptional activity. Th...
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Article
C677T polymorphism in methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase gene and psychoses
A common missense mutation of the methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) gene (C677T) has been shown to be a risk factor for premature cardiovascular disease and neural tube defect. Deficient activity of ...
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Article
Low activity allele of catechol-O-methyltransferase gene associated with rapid cycling bipolar disorder
Catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) plays a major role in the breakdown of catecholamines.1 An amino acid polymorphism (val-108-met) determines high and low activity of the enzyme.2,3 A recent study in a small sa...
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Article
Serotonin transporter gene polymorphisms: ethnic difference and possible association with bipolar affective disorder
There is some evidence suggesting that a polymorphism of variable number of tandem repeats (VNTR) in the second intron of the serotonin transporter (5-HTT) gene and another variation which lies 1.2 kb upstream...
