Association study of a functional catechol-o-methyltransferase polymorphism and smoking in healthy Caucasian subjects

Nedić, Gordana; Nikolac, Matea; Borovečki, Fran; Hajnšek, Sanja; Muck-Šeler, Dorotea; Pivac, Nela (2010) Association study of a functional catechol-o-methyltransferase polymorphism and smoking in healthy Caucasian subjects. Neuroscience Letters, 473 (3). pp. 216-219. ISSN 0304-3940

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Abstract

Tobacco smoking is a global health problem. The association of a functional common polymorphism in the catechol-o-methyltransferase gene (COMT Val158Met) with smoking behavior has been extensively studied, but with divergent findings. In the present study the frequency of COMT genotypes and alleles was evaluated in 578 male and a smaller group of 79 female unrelated, medication-free Caucasian healthy subjects of Croatian origin. Smokers were classified as subjects smoking  10 cigarettes per day, while subjects who never smoked in their life were regarded as nonsmokers. A 2 test with standardized residuals and Bonferroni correction revealed significant (P=0.017) differences in Met/Met, Met/Val or Val/Val genotype frequency between male smokers and nonsmokers. This significant association between COMT Val158Met polymorphism and smoking was not detected in female subjects, due to the small number of women, which represents a limitation of the study. Our results confirmed the significant association between COMT variants and smoking, which was due to the higher frequency of Val/Val homozygotes in male smokers compared to male nonsmokers. These results suggest that carriers of the high activity COMT variant are more prone to develop a higher level of nicotine dependence, or that they release more dopamine than carriers of Met/Met or Met/Val genotypes.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	catechol-o-methyltransferase polymorphism; healthy subjects; genetics; smoking
Subjects:	BIOMEDICINE AND HEALTHCARE > Basic Medical Sciences
Divisions:	Division of Molecular Medicine
Projects:	Project title Project leader Project code Project type Molekularna podloga i liječenje psihijatrijskih i stresom izazvanih poremećaja- Nela Pivac 098-0982522-2455 MZOS Farmakogenomika i proteomika serotoninskog i kateholaminskog sustava- Dorotea Muck-Šeler 098-0982522-2457 MZOS Genomska analiza transkriptoma i interaktoma u bolesnika s kompleksnim bolestima- Fran Borovečki 108-1081874-1923 MZOS
Depositing User:	Gordana Nedić Erjavec
Date Deposited:	13 Nov 2018 14:49
URI:	http://fulir.irb.hr/id/eprint/4278
DOI:	10.1016/j.neulet.2010.02.050

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