EFFICACY AND SIDE-EFFECTS OF CLOZAPINE NOT ASSOCIATED WITH VARIATION IN THE 5-HT2C RECEPTOR

IN the present study we tested the hypothesis that individual response to clozapine treatment and/or the occurrence of side-effects may be i nfluenced by genetic variation in the serotonin 5-HT2C receptor. We in vestigated the frequency of a common Cys23Ser substitution, which is k nown to alter the pharmacological properties of the protein, in 152 pa tients treated with clozapine. Presence of the Ser23 variant was previ ously reported to predict a good response to clozapine. However, our r esults did not support an association between genetic variation of the 5-HT2C receptor and response to clozapine. This held true whether the patients were subgrouped for sex and length of treatment. Moreover, w e found no consistent association with any of the observed side-effect s.