Association of Impulsivity and Polymorphic MicroRNA-641 Target Sites in the SNAP-25 Gene.

Impulsivity is a personality trait of high impact and is connected with several types of maladaptive behavior and psychiatric diseases, such as attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, alcohol and drug abuse, as well as pathological gambling and mood disorders. Polymorphic variants of the SNAP-25 gene emerged as putative genetic components of impulsivity, as SNAP-25 protein plays an important role in the central nervous system, and its SNPs are associated with several psychiatric disorders. In this study we aimed to investigate if polymorphisms in the regulatory regions of the SNAP-25 gene are in association with normal variability of impulsivity. Genotypes and haplotypes of two polymorphisms in the promoter (rs6077690 and rs6039769) and two SNPs in the 3' UTR (rs3746544 and rs1051312) of the SNAP-25 gene were determined in a healthy Hungarian population (N = 901) using PCR-RFLP or real-time PCR in combination with sequence specific probes. Significant association was found between the T-T 3' UTR haplotype and impulsivity, whereas no association could be detected with genotypes or haplotypes of the promoter loci. According to sequence alignment, the polymorphisms in the 3' UTR of the gene alter the binding site of microRNA-641, which was analyzed by luciferase reporter system. It was observed that haplotypes altering one or two nucleotides in the binding site of the seed region of microRNA-641 significantly increased the amount of generated protein in vitro. These findings support the role of polymorphic SNAP-25 variants both at psychogenetic and molecular biological levels

NORDIC JOURNAL OF PSYCHIATRY

Backround and aim: The Subjective Well-Being under Neuroleptics Scale, short form (SWNS), is a self-report measure that evaluates the states of well-being of schizophrenia patients using antipsychotic drugs independently from psychopathology of disease. This study examined the factor structure of the Turkish version of the scale using high-level statistical analyses. Methods: The SWNS was translated into Turkish and applied to 103 schizophrenic patients. A type of multi-trait-multi-method (MTMM) confirmatory factor analysis was conducted to determine the factor structure of the Turkish version of the scale. Results: The results of factor analysis of the SWNS were incompatible with the factor structure of the original scale. A set of MTMM analyses showed distinct method effects for both positive and negative item wording in the scale. In light of these findings, the factor structure of the SWNS was determined as having a one-dimensional structure, with bias due to item wording. Conclusions: The results of the present investigation indicated that the sub-factors of the SWNS failed to emerge from the data. This study is the first to show that there is an urgent need for further examination of the factor structure of the SWNS with regard to method effects. This issue has important implications for the use of sub-factors by both researchers and practitioners

KLINIK PSIKOFARMAKOLOJI BULTENI-BULLETIN OF CLINICAL PSYCHOPHARMACOLOGY

Reliability and validity of subjective well-being under neuroleptics scale-short form, Turkish version Objective:The Subjective Well-Being Under Neuroleptics Scale (SWNS) is a self-reported measure that evaluates the state of well-being of schizophrenis patients using antipsychotic drugs independently of psychotic symptoms. This study was intended to establish the validity and reliability of the Turkish version of the scale. Methods: The Cronbach alpha coefficient was calculated for reliability analysis of the scale, which was translated into Turkish and applied to 103 schizophrenia patients. The criterion validity was examined by correlation with reference scales (Turkish Version of the Functional Remission of General Schizophrenia, The Short Form of the World Health Organization Quality of Life) concurrently in use. The construct validity of the scale was assured using both exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. Findings: The Turkish version of the scale was found to have a high reliability co-efficient (0.881). In terms of total scores, the correlation with other scales is medium-good. However, the results of the Turkish version factor analysis were incompatible with the sub-dimensions of the original scale. Conclusions: Our findings show that the Turkish version of this scale is a valid and reliable tool in the evaluation of states of subjective well-being of schizophrenic patients using antipsychotic drugs. On the other hand, we recommend that studies to be conducted in Turkey use only the scale total score

Oxidative mechanisms in schizophrenia and their relationship with illness subtype and symptom profile

Aim: The aim of the present study was to investigate the differences in the antioxidant-oxidant balance (AO-OB) between schizophrenic patients and healthy individuals and to explore the relationship of AO-OB with illness subtypes and symptom profiles. Methods: After a 15-day drug-free period, schizophrenia patients (n = 50) in a clinical sample, and age- and sex-matched healthy subjects (n = 49) were enrolled. Total antioxidant potentials (TAOP) and total peroxide levels (TPEROX) of all participants were measured and the oxidative stress index (OSI) was calculated. The assessment included structured measurements, including the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS), and the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS). Results: TAOP had a significant positive correlation with age at onset of schizophrenia (P = 0.013), a negative correlation with the PANSS negative subscale scores (P = 0.008), a negative correlation with the PANSS total scores (P < 0.001), and a significant negative correlation with BPRS scores (P = 0.001). OSI had a significant negative correlation with age at onset (P = 0.046) and a significant positive correlation with PANSS negative subscale (P = 0.015). A multiple regression model indicated a significant linear combination of age, gender, duration of illness, subtype of schizophrenia, and PANSS scores, in which only the subtype of schizophrenia made a statistically significant contribution to predicting mean OSI (F[5,35] = 2.44, P = 0.04). Conclusion: Several parameters in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia, such as age of onset, level of negative symptoms, and subtype of illness, but not the presence of the illness itself, are associated with the level of oxidative stress. © 2009 Japanese Society of Psychiatry and Neurology

Effects of a Psychosocial Rehabilitation Program in Addition to Medication in Schizophrenic Patients: A Controlled Study

Objectives: The contemporary approach to psychiatric diseases is to refer the patient to community-based care instead of hospital-based care. In addition to medication, it has been found that day-hospital practices have positive results in schizophrenic patients. In this study, our purpose is to report the results of a psychosocial rehabilitation program at Bakirkoy Day Hospital for schizophrenic patients receiving medication, and to compare them with the results for schizophrenic patients receiving medication who were not in this program