Meta-analysis of association between obsessive-compulsive disorder and the 3' region of neuronal glutamate transporter gene SLC1A1

Am J Med Genet B Neuropsychiatr Genet. 2013 Jun;162B(4):367-79. doi: 10.1002/ajmg.b.32137. Epub 2013 Apr 18.

Abstract

The neuronal glutamate transporter gene SLC1A1 is a candidate gene for obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) based on linkage studies and convergent evidence implicating glutamate in OCD etiology. The 3' end of SLC1A1 is the only genomic region with consistently demonstrated OCD association, especially when analyzing male-only probands. However, specific allele associations have not been consistently replicated, and recent OCD genome-wide association and meta-analysis studies have not incorporated all previously associated SLC1A1 SNPs. To clarify the nature of association between SLC1A1 and OCD, pooled analysis was performed on all available relevant raw study data, comprising a final sample of 815 trios, 306 cases and 634 controls. This revealed weak association between OCD and one of nine tested SLC1A1 polymorphisms (rs301443; uncorrected P = 0.046; non-significant corrected P). Secondary analyses of male-affecteds only (N = 358 trios and 133 cases) demonstrated modest association between OCD and a different SNP (rs12682807; uncorrected P = 0.012; non-significant corrected P). Findings of this meta-analysis are consistent with the trend of previous candidate gene studies in psychiatry and do not clarify the putative role of SLC1A1 in OCD pathophysiology. Nonetheless, it may be important to further examine the potential associations demonstrated in this amalgamated sample, especially since the SNPs with modest associations were not included in the more highly powered recent GWAS or in a past meta-analysis including five SLC1A1 polymorphisms. This study underscores the need for much larger sample sizes in future genetic association studies and suggests that next-generation sequencing may be beneficial in examining the potential role of rare variants in OCD.

Publication types

  • Meta-Analysis
  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, N.I.H., Intramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Amino Acid Transport System X-AG / chemistry
  • Amino Acid Transport System X-AG / genetics*
  • Case-Control Studies
  • Female
  • Genetic Markers
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Neurons / metabolism*
  • Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder / genetics*
  • Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide

Substances

  • Amino Acid Transport System X-AG
  • Genetic Markers