Association of 5HT2A receptor gene polymorphism and alcohol abuse with behavior problems

This study investigated the association between TIC polymorphism at positio n 102, of the B-hydroxytryptamine 2A receptor gene and alcoholism with and without behavior problems. Eighty-five subjects (45 men, 40 women) with alc ohol abuse, 75 subjects (51 men, 24 women) with alcohol dependence, and 70 normal control subjects (21 men, 49 women) participated in the study. The r esults show that the frequency of the homozygous T102 genotype was signific antly lower in the group of male alcohol abuse with behavior problems than in the female group (chi (2) = 4.072, df = 1, P < 0.05) and the allele freq uency of T102 was also lower in the male group than in the female group (<c hi>(2) = 4.187, df = 1, P < 0.05), Of the male alcohol abuse subjects, the group with behavior problems was found to have lower frequencies of the T10 2 allele than the group without behavior problems (<chi>(2) = 4.328, df = i t P < 0.05), In conclusion, this study demonstrates that alcoholism is hete rogeneous and male alcohol abuse with behavioral problems was associated wi th TIC 102 polymorphism of the 5HT2A receptor gene. (C) 2000 Wiley-Liss, In c.