Analysis of gastrin-releasing peptide gene and gastrin-releasing peptide receptor gene in patients with agoraphobia

Psychiatr Genet. 2014 Oct;24(5):232-3. doi: 10.1097/YPG.0000000000000038.

Abstract

A gastrin-releasing peptide receptor (GRPR) knock-out mouse model provided evidence that the gastrin-releasing peptide (GRP) and its neural circuitry operate as a negative feedback-loop regulating fear, suggesting a novel candidate mechanism contributing to individual differences in fear-conditioning and associated psychiatric disorders such as agoraphobia with/without panic disorder. Studies in humans, however, provided inconclusive evidence on the association of GRP and GRPR variations in agoraphobia with/without panic disorder. Based on these findings, we investigated whether GRP and GRPR variants are associated with agoraphobia. Mental disorders were assessed via the Munich-Composite International Diagnostic Interview (M-CIDI) in 95 patients with agoraphobia with/without panic disorder and 119 controls without any mental disorders. A complete sequence analysis of GRP and GRPR was performed in all participants. We found no association of 16 GRP and 7 GRPR variants with agoraphobia with/without panic disorder.

Publication types

  • Letter

MeSH terms

  • Agoraphobia / genetics*
  • Case-Control Studies
  • Gastrin-Releasing Peptide / genetics*
  • Genetic Predisposition to Disease*
  • Humans
  • Receptors, Bombesin / genetics*

Substances

  • Receptors, Bombesin
  • Gastrin-Releasing Peptide