Striatal dopamine transporter availability and DAT-1 gene in adults with ADHD: no higher DAT availability in patients with homozygosity for the 10-repeat allele

• Published in: The world journal of biological psychiatry Vol. 7; no. 3; p. 152
• Main Authors: Krause, Johanna, Dresel, Stefan H, Krause, Klaus-Henning, La Fougère, Christian, Zill, Peter, Ackenheil, Manfred
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England 01.01.2006
• Subjects: Adult; Age Factors; Alleles; Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity - diagnostic imaging; Attention Deficit Disorder with Hyperactivity - genetics; Chromosomes, Human, Pair 5; Corpus Striatum - diagnostic imaging; Corpus Striatum - physiopathology; Cross-Cultural Comparison; Dopamine Plasma Membrane Transport Proteins - genetics; Dopamine Plasma Membrane Transport Proteins - metabolism; Exons; Female; Genetic Carrier Screening; Homozygote; Humans; Male; Middle Aged; Minisatellite Repeats - genetics; Organotechnetium Compounds; Polymorphism, Genetic - genetics; Tomography, Emission-Computed, Single-Photon; Tropanes
• DOI: 10.1080/15622970500518444
• ISSN: 1562-2975

In 29 adults with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) striatal dopamine transporter (DAT) availability was assessed by [(99m)Tc]TRODAT-1 SPECT and correlated with 3' VNTR polymorphism of the DAT gene on chromosome 5p15.3. Seventeen patients showed homozygosity for the 10-repeat allele, two homozygosity of the 9 allele and 10 were heterozygous (9-10). No statistically significant difference in DAT availability was found between patients with 10-10 carriers (DAT 1.28 +/- 0.34) and with at least one 9 allele (DAT 1.31 +/- 0.27); when smokers were excluded, DAT availability was 1.38 +/- 0.28 in the 10-10 carriers (n = 12) and 1.42 +/- 0.19 in the 9-10 and 9-9 carriers (n = 7). In conclusion, no higher striatal DAT was found in patients with homozygosity of the 10 allele of the DAT gene in this study. These results differ from a study in 11 Korean children with ADHD, in which 10-10 carriers showed higher DAT availability in [(123)I]IPT SPECT. Discrepancies may be explained by differences in patient's age, ethnical differences, different imaging techniques or the limited number of patients included in both studies.