|
|
 |
|
Original Article |
|
|
Neuropsychopharmacology (2002) 26 692-695.10.1038/S0893-133X(01)00394-3
A Gender-Specific Association between the Serotonin Transporter Gene and Suicide Attempts
Enrique Baca-García1 MD, Concepción Vaquero MSc2, Carmen Diaz-Sastre1 MD, Jeronimo Saiz-Ruiz1 MD, José Fernández-Piqueras2 Ph.D and Jose de Leon3 MD |
|
|
|
1Department of Psychiatry, Hospital Ramon y Cajal, Universidad de Alcala-Madrid, Madrid, Spain
2Department of Biology, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
3Eastern State Hospital, Lexington, KY USA
Correspondence: Dr Jose de Leon, Mental Health Research Center at Eastern State Hospital, 627 West Fourth St., Lexington, KY 40508. Tel.: (859) 246-7487, Fax: (859) 246-7019, E-mail: jdeleon@uky.edu
|
|
|
|
ABSTRACT
|
|
This pilot study tested the gender-specificity of the association between suicide attempts and a polymorphism in the promoter area of the serotonin transporter with two allelic variants, a long (1) variant and a short (s) variant. In a Spanish general hospital, 180 suicide attempters (121 women and 59 men) and 212 control blood donors (93 women and 119 men) were recruited. Subjects were classified as S individuals (s/s or s/l) with low expression of the serotonin transporter, and L individuals (l/l) with high expression. S individuals were significantly overrepresented (or L, underrepresented) in female attempters when compared with female controls and male attempters. Lethality appeared to have a significant influence on the effects of the genotype in suicide since S females were overrepresented among non-lethal female attempters. Further studies are needed to replicate that the serotonin genotype polymorphism may influence suicide attempts only in females.
Keywords: Serotonin; Suicide; Genetics; Serotonin transporter; Association; Women |
|
| |
top  |
|
|
|
|
Send to a friend
Download PDF
Full Text
Next Article
Previous Article
Table of Contents