International Journal of Emergency Mental Health and Human Resilience
Open Access

Research Article

Association between Postpartum Depression and GnΒ3 C825T Polymorphism

Ri-hua Xie^1,2, Hai-yan Xie³, Daniel Krewski², Mark Walker^4,5, Shi Wu Wen^4,5

¹School of Nursing, Hunan University of Medicine, Huaihua, P.R.China

²McLaughlin Centre for Population Health Risk Assessment, Institute of Population Health, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Canada

³Department of Nursing, Social Work College, Changsha, P.R.China

⁴Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, Canada

⁵Clinical Epidemiology Program, Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, Ottawa, Canada

*Corresponding Author:

E-mail: swwen@ohri.ca

Background: Postpartum depression (PPD), affecting mother’s and baby’s health and wellbeing, is a subtype of major depression with onset within 4 weeks after childbirth. G-protein β3 subunit gene C825T polymorphism has been shown to be associated with major adult depression. This study aims to investigate whether PPD is associated with GNβ3 C825T polymorphism in Chinese Han women. Methods: This was a case control study, nested to a cohort that was established in three hospitals in Changsha, Hunan, China between February and September 2007. PPD was measured using the Chinese version of Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) at two weeks postpartum with a score of 13 or higher as the cut-off. GNB3 gene Rs5443 (C/T) was determined with ligase detection reaction (LDR). Genotype and allele frequency of GNB3 gene Rs5443 polymorphism were compared between women with PPD and hospital and age-matched controls. Results: A total of 43 PPD cases and 86 matched controls were included in the final analysis. GNβ3 Rs5443SNP genotypes were CC = 23.30%, C/T = 51.2%, TT = 25.6%, C = 48.84%, and T = 51.16%, respectively, in PPD cases, and corresponding figures were CC = 30.20%, C/T = 39.50%, TT = 30.20%, C = 50.00%, and T = 50.00%, respectively, in matched controls (P>0.05). For PPD subjects, the genotypes were not associated with the clinical phenotype: EPDS total score and/or subunit scores (P>0.05). Conclusion: No association between GNβ3 rs5443SNP polymorphism and PPD is observed in the pilot data from a small sample of Chinese Han women. Replications of our finding from a large sample are needed.