Research Article
759C/T Variants of the Serotonin (5-HT2C) Receptor Gene and Weight Gain in Children and Adolescents in Long-Term Risperidone Treatment
Nicole del Castillo1*, Bridget Zimmerman M2, Billie Tyler3, Vicki L Ellingrod4 and Chadi Calarge5 | |
1Department of Psychiatry, The University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, USA | |
2Department of Biostatistics, The University of Iowa College of Public Health, USA | |
3Department of Psychiatry, University of Iowa, USA | |
4Department of Clinical Social and Administrative Sciences, College of Pharmacy, Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, University of Michigan, USA | |
5Department of Psychiatry, The University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine, Psychiatry Research, USA | |
Corresponding Author : | Nicole del Castillo Department of Psychiatry The University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics 200 Hawkins Drive, Iowa City, IA, 52242, USA Tel: 319-356-1616 E-mail: nicole-delcastillo@uiowa.edu |
Received May 17, 2013; Accepted June 27, 2013; Published June 29, 2013 | |
Citation: del Castillo N, Bridget Zimmerman M, Tyler B, Ellingrod VL, Calarge C (2013) 759C/T Variants of the Serotonin (5-HT2C) Receptor Gene and Weight Gain in Children and Adolescents in Long-Term Risperidone Treatment. Clin Pharmacol Biopharm 2:110. doi:10.4172/2167-065X.1000110 | |
Copyright: © 2013 del Castillo N, et al. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. |
Abstract
Background: Great inter-individual variability exists in the susceptibility to gain weight during antipsychotic treatment. Thus, we examined whether the -759C/T variants in the promoter region of the 5HT2C receptor gene were differentially associated with weight gain in children and adolescents in long-term risperidone treatment. Methods: Medically healthy 7 to 17 year-olds, treated with risperidone for ≥ six months, were enrolled. Anthropometric measurements, laboratory tests, and treatment history were obtained upon enrollment and from medical records. The effect of the genotype on the trajectory of age-sex-adjusted weight and body mass index (BMI) z scores before and after the onset of risperidone treatment was investigated.
Results: In 124 subjects (90% males, mean age: 11.8 years) treated with risperidone for a mean of 2.8 years, weight and BMI z scores significantly increased after starting risperidone. This change was similar across the two genotype groups as were changes in several cardiometabolic variables.
Conclusion: In contrast to other reports, the T allele failed to confer protection against excessive weight gain or cardiometabolic abnormalities in this group of children and adolescents chronically treated with risperidone.