The attenuated DA response in alpha CaMKIIT286A mice was in line with altered c-Fos activation in the ventral tegmental area after acute and subchronic alcohol administration. In order to compare findings in mice with the human JNJ-26481585 order condition, we tested 23 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the CAMK2A gene for their association with alcohol dependence in a population of 1333 male patients with severe alcohol dependence and 939 controls. We found seven significant associations between CAMK2A SNPs and alcohol dependence, one of which in an autophosphorylation-related area of the gene. Together, our data suggest alpha CaMKII autophosphorylation as a
facilitating mechanism in the establishment of alcohol drinking behavior with changing the DA-5-HT balance as a putative mechanism.”
“Background: Oxytocin (OXT) and prolactin (PRL) are neuropeptide hormones that interact with the serotonin system and are check details involved in the stress response and social affiliation. In human studies, serum OXT and PRL levels have been associated with depression and related phenotypes. Our purpose was to determine if single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) at the loci for OXT, PRL and their receptors, OXTR and PRLR, were associated with childhood-onset mood disorders (COMD).
Methods: Using 678 families
in a family-based association design, we genotyped 16 SNPs at OXT, PRL, OXTR and PRLR to test for association with COMD.
Results: No significant associations were found for SNPs in the OXTR, PRL, or PRLR genes. Two of
three SNPs 3′ of the OXT gene were associated with COMD (p <= 0.02), significant after spectral decomposition, but were not significant after additionally correcting for the number of genes tested. Supplementary analyses of Bcl-w parent-of-origin and proband sex effects for OXT SNPs by Fisher’s Exact test were not significant after Bonferroni correction.
Conclusions: We have examined 16 OXT and PRL system gene variants, with no evidence of statistically significant association after correction for multiple tests. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.”
“According to preclinical studies, glutamate has been implicated in the pathogenesis of anxiety. In order to elucidate the role of glutamate in anxiety and panic in humans, brain glutamate+glutamine (Glx) levels were measured during cholecystokinin-tetrapeptide (CCK-4)induced panic using magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS). Eighteen healthy subjects underwent a CCK-4 challenge. MR spectra were obtained from the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) using a single voxel point-resolved spectroscopy method and analyzed using LCModel. A combined fitting of Glx was performed. Panic was assessed using the Acute Panic Inventory (API) and Panic Symptom Scale (PSS) scores. Moreover, hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis stimulation was monitored throughout the challenge.