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Ömer Başay,1 Burge Kabukcu Basay,1 Huseyin Alacam,2 Onder Ozturk,1 Ahmet Buber,1 Senay Gorucu Yilmaz,3 Yılmaz Kıroğlu,4 Mehmet Emin Erdal,5 Hasan Herken2 1Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Pamukkale University, Denizli, 2Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Pamukkale University, Denizli, 3Department of Nutrition and Dietetics, Faculty of Health Sciences, Gaziantep University, Gaziantep, 4Department of Radiology, School of Medicine, Pamukkale University, Denizli, 5Department of Medical Biology and Genetics, Faculty of Medicine, Mersin University, Mersin,Turkey Objective: To investigate the neurometabolite level changes according to synapsin III gene rs133945G>A and rs133946C>G polymorphisms by using magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) in patients with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).Methods: Fifty-seven adults diagnosed with ADHD were recruited for the study. The participants were examined by single-voxel 1H MRS when medication naïve and 30minutes after oral administration of 10mg methylphenidate (Mph). Those who had been on a stimulant discontinued the medication 48hours before MRS imaging. Spectra were taken from the anterior cingulate cortex, dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, striatum, and cerebellum, and N-acetylaspartate (NAA), choline, and creatine levels were examined. For genotyping of the synapsin III gene polymorphisms, DNA was isolated from peripheral blood leukocytes. The effects of age, sex, and ADHD subtypes were controlled in the analyses.Results: After a single dose of Mph, choline levels increased significantly in the striatum of rs133945G>A polymorphism-GG genotypes (P=0.020) and NAA levels rose in the anterior cingulate cortex of rs133946C>G polymorphism-CG genotypes (P=0.014). Both rs133945G>Aand rs133946C>G polymorphisms were found to statistically significantly affect the alteration of NAA levels in response to Mph in dorsolateral prefrontal cortex with two-way repeated measure of analysis of variance. Post hoc comparisons revealed a significant difference between CG and GG genotypes of rs133946C>G polymorphisms after Bonferroni adjustment (P=0.016).Conclusion: Synapsin III gene polymorphisms may be affecting the changes in neurometabolite levels in response to Mph in adult ADHD patients. Future studies are needed to confirm our findings. Keywords: adult ADHD, magnetic resonance spectroscopy, N-acetylaspartate, genotype

Objective: Nicotine addiction is the most prevalent addiction type all over the world and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is an important factor associated with nicotine addiction. Primary aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of ADHD symptoms on smoking cessation. Methods: Smokers who had admitted to the smoking cessation center were evaluated with using Wender Utah and Fagerstorm Scales at the beginning of study and for the success of smoking cessation at the end of 6 months. Results: Of the 353 smokers enrolled to the study, 99 individuals had a score of 36 or higher on Wender Utah scale (ADHD symptoms group). Of these 99 patients with ADHD symptoms, 11 (11.1%) and of the 254 non-ADHD symptoms group, 68 (26.8%) had quitted smoking after a period of six months. Logistic regression analysis revealed that having ADHD symptoms predicted failure of smoking cessation (adjusted odds ratios 2.12, 95% confidence interval 1.02-4.40) after controlling for sociodemographic and smoking-related variables. Conclusions: ADHD symptoms may be an important factor affecting smoking cessation. Examining these symptoms in problematic nicotine addicts might help treatment outcome.

Objective: Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) can be given as the form of acute, continuation or maintenance ECT according to the process of administration. We report our 7 years' observation with acute and maintenance ECT in a university hospital in Turkey. Methods: The medical records of the hospitalized patients treated with acute or maintenance ECT between the years 2007 and 2013 was retrospectively analyzed. The sociodemographic characteristics, diagnosis, data of ECT and the co-administered psychotropic drugs were recorded. The frequency of ECT was calculated by identifying the total number of the hospitalized patients during the study period from the hospital records. Results: A total number of 1,432 female and 1,141 male patients hospitalized in a period of 7 years, with a total number of 111 patients treated with ECT. The ratio of ECT was 4%, maintenance/acute ECT 11%. For acute ECT, affective disorders (65.3%) and psychotic disorders (21.6%) were among the leading diagnoses. Maintenance ECT, the diagnosis was; 6 affective disorders, 4 psychotic disorders and 1 obsessive compulsive disorder. There was a significant difference between the patients receiving acute and maintenance ECT in terms of age, duration of illness, and number of previous hospitalizations and ECTs. Conclusion: The percentage of patients treated with acute ECT is lower in our institution than that in many other institutions from our country. Acute and maintenance ECT should be considered as an important treatment option particularly for patients with long disease duration, a high number of hospitalizations and a history of benefiting from previous ECTs. Copyright © 2016, Korean College of Neuropsychopharmacology.

WOS: 000373539400033, PubMed ID: 26879834, There are some studies in attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) which note altered circadian rhythms, suggesting abnormalities in melatonin physiology. In order to better characterize the possible melatonin alteration in ADHD, in this study we aimed to detect daytime, nighttime and 24 h levels of 6-hydroxymelatoninsulfate (6-OH MS) in the patients diagnosed with ADHD. Twenty-seven patients between 6 and 16 years-old, who had been diagnosed initially with ADHD, but without other physical and psychiatric disease history and who had not taken psychotropic pharmacotherapy for six months, plus 28 healthy volunteer controls, were included in the study. Urine samples were collected during the whole 24 h cycle, daytime and nighttime separately to assess the time-dependent excretion of the 6-OH MS, which is the main urine metabolite of melatonin. The Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) method was used for measuring the urine 6-OH MS level. Daytime (15.4 (8.9-24.8) ng/ml vs 6.9 (2.5-15.9) ng/ml, p = 0.002), nighttime (102.9 (65.3-197.7) ng/ml vs 61.5 (37.2-114.4) ng/ml, p = 0.012) and 24 h (54.1 (34.6-83.9) ng/ml vs 27.3 (14.3-48.9) ng/ml, p =0.000) 6-OH MS levels median (25p-75p) were found to be significantly higher in the ADHD group. After adjustment for age and sex, there was a statistically significant difference between the ADHD group (59.8 +/- 4.9) and control group (33.8 +/- 4.8) in 24-h 6-OH MS levels (F(1, 51) = 13.673, p = .001, partial eta 2 = .211). There was no relationship between 6-OH MS levels and Conners Parent Rating Scale short form subscale scores for the ADHD group. These findings indicate that melatonin production is increased in ADHD cases. Further research is needed to determine and thereby understand the mechanisms underlying the higher melatonin production, to assess the impact of altered melatonin on the pathophysiology of ADHD. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved., Pamukkale University Scientific Research Projects Coordination Unit [TPF007], This research was supported by the Pamukkale University Scientific Research Projects Coordination Unit (TPF007). We thank Russel J. Reiter for his guidance from the beginning of the study.

WOS: 000374501400001, PubMed ID: 27143897, Introduction: In this article, the COMT gene val(158)met polymorphism and attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)-related differences in diffusion-tensor-imaging-measured white matter (WM) structure in children with ADHD and controls were investigated. Patients and methods: A total of 71 children diagnosed with ADHD and 24 controls aged 8-15 years were recruited. Using diffusion tensor imaging, COMT polymorphism and ADHD-related WM alterations were investigated, and any interaction effect between the COMT polymorphism and ADHD was also examined. The effects of age, sex, and estimated total IQ were controlled by multivariate analysis of covariance (MANCOVA). Results: First, an interaction between the COMT val(158)met polymorphism and ADHD in the right (R) cingulum (cingulate gyrus) (CGC) was found. According to this, valine (val) homozygote ADHD-diagnosed children had significantly lower fractional anisotropy (FA) and higher radial diffusivity (RD) in the R-CGC than ADHD-diagnosed methionine (met) carriers, and val homozygote controls had higher FA and lower RD in the R-CGC than val homozygote ADHD patients. Second, met carriers had higher FA and axial diffusivity in the left (L)-uncinate fasciculus and lower RD in the L-posterior corona radiata and L-posterior thalamic radiation (include optic radiation) than the val homozygotes, independent of ADHD diagnosis. Third, children with ADHD had lower FA in the L-CGC and R-retrolenticular part of the internal capsule than the controls, independent of the COMT polymorphism. Conclusion: Significant differences reported here may be evidence that the COMT gene val(158)met polymorphism variants, as well as ADHD, could affect brain development. ADHD and the COMT polymorphism might be interactively affecting WM development in the R-CGC to alter the WM connectivity in children with val homozygote ADHD.

The effects of methylphenidate (MPH) treatment on N-acetyl aspartate (NAA), choline and creatine are being examined in individuals with different subtypes of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Sixty ADHD subjects were included into the study aging between 18 and 60 years. Levels of NAA, creatine and choline in anterior cingulate cortex, cerebellum, striatum and dorsolateral prefrontal cortex were measured with magnetic resonance spectroscopy. Then, 10 mg oral MPH was given to the subjects and the same metabolite levels were measured after an interval of 30 min. Distribution of the patients according to the ADHD subtypes was as follows: 21 of them (35.0%) were in the inattentive type, 11 of them (18.3%) were in the hyperactive type and 28 of them were (46.7%) in the combined type. Changes of brain metabolite levels after MPH were found not to be statistically significantly different between the subtypes. The increase of choline levels after MPH compared to the levels of choline before MPH in striatum in the combined type patients were statistically significant. No clear association was found between ADHD subtypes and changes of brain metabolites with use of MPH in adult ADHD. © 2015 Elsevier Ireland Ltd.

Objective The synaptosomal-associated protein of 25 kDa (SNAP-25) gene is a presynaptic plasma membrane protein and an integral component of the vesicle docking and fusion machinery mediating secretion of neurotransmitters. Previously, several studies reported association between SNAP-25 and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). We investigated whether these SNAP-25 polymorphisms (MnlI T/G and DdelI T/C) were also associated with ADHD in the Turkish population. Methods: Our study comprised unrelated 139 subjects who met DSM-IV criteria for ADHD and 73 controls and all were of Turkish origin. Genetic analyses were performed and patients were evaluated with Wender-Utah Rating Scale and Adult ADD/ADHD DSM IV-Based Diagnostic Screening and Rating Scale. Results: SNAP-25 DdelI polymorphism was not associated with ADHD but there was a statistically significant difference between ADHD patients and controls for SNAP-25 MnlI polymorphism. For SNAP-25 MnlI polymorphism patients with G/G genotype of the SNAP-25 gene MnlI polymorphism had higher Wender-Utah scores and higher scores in the 1st and 3rd parts of adult ADD/ADHD Scale. Conclusion: We detected a significant association of the MnlI polymorphism in our ADHD sample which was similar to previous findings. Our study also revealed that SNAP-25 MnlI polymorphism was also associated with symptom severity of ADHD. This study is also, the first report on the association of SNAP-25 with ADHD in the Turkish population. © 2014 Korean Neuropsychiatric Association.

Objective The etiology of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) has not been entirely clarified yet. Structural and metabolic differences at the prefrontal striatal cerebellary system and the interaction of gene and environment are the main factors that thought to play roles in the etiology. Genetic investigations are performed especially about the dopamine pathways and receptors. In this study; it was aimed to investigate the association of the synaptobrevin-2 (VAMP-2) gene Ins/Del polymorphism and syntaxin 1A gene intron 7 polymorphism, which take place in encoding presynaptic protein, with adult ADHD. Methods One hundred thirty-nine patients, having ADHD aging between 18 and 60 years and 106 healthy people as controls were included into the study. DNA samples were extracted from whole blood and genetic analysis were performed. Results A significant difference was determined between ADHD and VAMP-2 Ins/Del polymorphism and syntaxin 1A intron 7 polymorphism according to the control group. These polymorphisms were found not to be associated with subtypes of ADHD. Conclusion It is supposed that synaptic protein genes together with dopaminergic genes might have roles in the etiology of ADHD. © 2014 Korean Neuropsychiatric Association.

Objective: The rate of polypharmacy is increasing in patients with psychotic disorders. Polypharmacy is defined as the concomitant use of two or more drugs at a time. As most psychotropic medications are metabolized via the cytochrome enzyme system, it is easy to predict that polypharmacy will increase the risk of drug-drug interactions. This study was planned to evaluate the interaction risks of medications used by patients with a diagnosis of schizophrenia and schizoaffective disorder., Method: This study enrolled inpatients and outpatients of 18-65 years of age, diagnosed with schizophrenia or schizoaffective disorder according to the DSM-IV classification, who had been receiving antipsychotics for at least 12 weeks. Co-administration of antipsychotic and other psychotropic drugs for at least 4 weeks was recorded as polypharmacy. The risk of interaction was determined as follows: all medications one patient was using were sent to the internet site https://drugs.com as individual treatment regimens, and interaction information for healthcare specialists was used., Results: The study sample consisted of 240 patients (141 males; 58.8%; 99 females; 41.2%) in total, with the schizophrenia spectrum of diseases (schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorder). One hundred and thirty six (56.6%) patients used only one antipsychotic and 104 (43.4%) patients used 2 or more antipsychotics. The mean number of medications was 2.58±1.22 (min 1-max 6), the mean number of interactions was 1.90±2.04 (min 1-max 10). One hundred and seventy two (71.7%) patients were taking medications with a risk of interaction, with 417 total drug interaction risks. Of the interaction risks, 87.8% (total number 366) were at a moderate level. Approximately one quarter of the patients (n=42, 24.4%) were using medications with a major risk, and two patients (1.2%) were taking drugs with a minor risk of interaction. Among probable outcomes of drug interactions, the first 3 places were occupied by a risk of anticholinergic side effects, a risk of CNS or respiratory depression and a risk of QT prolongation., Conclusion: The present study reports that an important percentage of patients are exposed to drug-drug interactions with ever-increasing use of multiple medications in the schizophrenia spectrum of diseases, and among these interactions, most major risks were cardiovascular risks, especially QT prolongation. Prospective studies with larger numbers of patients are needed in this area. © 2014, Cukurova Univ Tip Fakultesi Psikiyatri Anabilim Dali. All rights reserved.

It was aimed to investigate the association of the synapsin III gene -196 G> A and -631 C>G polymorphisms that takes place in an encoding presynaptic protein, with adult attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). One hundred thirty-nine patients having adult ADHD and 106 controls were included in the study. DNA samples were extracted from whole blood and genetic analyses were performed. A significant difference was determined between ADHD and synapsin III gene -631 C>G polymorphism compared to the control group. No significant difference was determined between ADHD and synapsin III gene -196 G>A polymorphism. These polymorphisms were found not to be associated with subtypes of ADHD. It is supposed that synaptic protein genes together with dopaminergic genes might have roles in the etiology of ADHD. © Copyright 2013, Mary Ann Liebert, Inc. 2013.

Background: We aimed to determine the relationship between antidepressant treatment and oxidative metabolism in patients with major depression. Materials and methods: Two groups, the patients diagnosed with depression (N = 21), and healthy controls (N = 40), were enrolled in the study. The patients received naturalistic antidepressant treatment. Serum samples were collected prior to treatment and at the end of the 8 weeks of antidepressant treatment. Those participants in the control group were sampled only once. The total antioxidant status (TAS) and total oxidant status (TOS) were measured and oxidative stress index (OSI) was calculated. Severity of depression in patients was also measured both prior to and after 8 weeks of antidepressant treatment. Results: In terms of TAS, TOS, and OSI there were significant differences between the groups both at the baseline. Baseline and final HAM-D scores of the patient group differed significantly. The baseline TAS, TOS, and OSI levels of patients did not change significantly after antidepressant treatment. The duration of illness was not correlated with baseline serum levels of TAS, TOS, and OSI. Patients who were deemed to be unresponsive to the antidepressant treatment differed significantly from the controls both at the baseline and at the final visit for TAS, TOS, and OSI. Additionally, treatment responsive patients did not show any similar difference in terms of TOS and OSI levels. Discussion: Chronic increase in anti-oxidant and oxidant levels in patients with major depression may be related to the elevation of anti-oxidant defenses that were developed in response to increased oxidative metabolism. © 2011 Elsevier GmbH. All rights reserved.

Objective: To investigate the interaction of treatment-related hemodynamic changes with genotype status for Synaptosomal associated protein 25 (SNAP-25) gene in participants with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) on and off single dose short-acting methylphenidate treatment with functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). Method: A total of 15 right-handed adults and 16 right-handed children with DSM-IV diagnosis of ADHD were evaluated. Ten milligrams of short-acting methylphenidate was administered in a crossover design. Results: Participants with SNAP-25 DdeI T/T genotype had decreased right deoxyhemoglobin ([HHb]) with treatment. SNAP-25 MnlI genotype was also associated with right deoxyhemoglobin ([HbO2]) and [HHb] changes as well as left [HHb] change. When the combinations of these genotypes were taken into account, the participants with [DdeI C/C or T/C and MnlI G/G or T/G] genotype had increased right [HHb] with MPH use whereas the participants with [DdeI T/T and MnlI T/T] or [DdeI T/T and MnlI G/G or T/G] genotypes had decreased right prefrontal [HHb]. Conclusions: These results suggested that SNAP-25 polymorphism might be associated with methylphenidate induced brain hemodynamic changes in ADHD participants. © 2011 SAGE Publications.

Introduction: Genetic polymorphisms of cytochrome P450 (CYP) may predict the treatment response or occurrence of side effects of antipsychotic drugs. Aim: We studied the association of response to clozapine treatment in schizophrenic patients in relation to polymorphisms in the CYP1A2 gene. Methods: The degree of psychosis of the patients (n=55) was assessed using the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS), the Scale for the Assessment of Positive Symptoms (SAPS), the Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms (SANS) and routine biochemistry. The patients were monitored for 18 weeks and the scales were applied before starting the treatment and at the end of the follow up period. Clozapine was used at doses of 200 to 600 mg/day. A positive response was defined as a 20% decrease in pre-and posttreatment scores of one of the BPRS, SANS, or SAPS scores. In addition, 45 patients, who were already on clozapine treatment, were assessed retrospectively. Results: As assessed at the 18th week after start of therapy, lack of response to clozapine treatment was 2.4 fold higher in the patients carrying the CYP1A2*1F*1F genotype (p=0.02) compared to patients carrying at least one wild type allele (i.e. *1/*1 or *1/*1F). Smoking decreased the response rate by about 15% (p=0.014). Conclusion: The results of our study suggest that the CYP1A2*1F/*1F genotype may be a risk factor for lack of response to clozapine treatment in psychotic patients, especially in cigarette smokers.

Olanzapine is a second-generation antipsychotic that may cause weight gain and metabolic syndrome in some cases. The peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR)-? is an important gene in the progress of type II diabetes and metabolic syndrome. In recent studies the polymorphism of the PPAR-? has been studied in type II diabetes mellitus, polycystic ovary syndrome, and insulin resistance syndrome. It is aimed to evaluate the association between polymorphism of PPAR-? gene and olanzapine-induced weight gain. Our study comprised 95 unrelated subjects who strictly met Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, 4th edition (DSM-IV) criteria for schizophrenia, and all were of Turkish origin. All patients were evaluated with rating scales, and genetic analyses were performed. We found statistically significant differences between pretreatment and posttreatment body mass index and weight change in Pro12Ala polymorphism of PPAR-?2. Our results suggest that genetic polymorphism of PPAR might be important in olanzapine-induced weight gain and that genetic variance of people might be considered in antipsychotic medication selection. © 2009 Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.

Objectives: Several oxidants and antioxidants have been evaluated in schizophrenia. However, previous studies frequently focused on individual parameters. Determination of the total oxidant and antioxidant status may be more useful. Therefore, we aimed to evaluate both plasma total oxidant status (TOS) and total antioxidant status (TAS) together with the oxidative stress index (OSI) in schizophrenia patients for the first time in the literature. Methods: A total of 60 schizophrenia patients and 40 healthy volunteers were included in the study. The Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) and the Clinical Global Impression-severity scale (CGI-S) were used to evaluate the severity of schizophrenia in the patients. TOS and TAS were measured in plasma and the OSI was calculated for patients and controls. Results: There was no difference between patients and controls with regard to TOS, but the patients’ TAS and OSI were significantly lower and higher, respectively, than those of the controls. No difference was detected between the schizophrenia subtypes or between the patients on typical or atypical antipsychotic medications or a combination of the two with regard to oxidative parameters. There was a weak to moderately significant negative correlation between TAS and total, positive and general psychopathology PANSS scores. Finally, we found a weak to moderately significant negative correlation between the CGI-S score and TOS and between the CGI-S score and TAS. Conclusions: There is a defect in the antioxidant defense system in schizophrenia. Known oxidative stress that causes oxidative cell damage and thus contributes to the pathophysiology of schizophrenia may be mainly related to this defensive defect.

Objectives: Various psychological, social, genetic, biochemical, factors are to be involved in the etiology of OCD. Some molecules of free radicals are also found to play role in OCD. To the best of our knowledge, there has been no study, regarding the role of free radicals in the pathogenesis of OCD, from a general antioxidant aspect of view. Therefore, in this present cross-sectional study, we aimed to assess whether antioxidant-oxidant status is associated with OCD and can be used or not as a biological marker regarding that disorder. Methods: 37 OCD patients diagnosed according to DSM-IV and as control group forty healthy subjects were included to the study. Venous blood samples were collected once. The total oxidant status, antioxidant status and oxidative stress index of the plasma were measured using a novel automated colorimetric measurement method. Results: There was not a significant difference between only OCD and all patients in all measures (TOS: Z = - 1.453, p = 0.521; TAS: Z = - 0.151, p = 0.880; OSI: Z = - 0.679 p = 0.497). TAS levels were both higher than controls in only OCD groups and all patients (Z = - 5.538, p < 0.001 and Z = - 6.394, p < 0.001 respectively). TOS and OSI of both patient groups were significantly lower than controls (TOS: Z = - 5.131, p < 0.001; OSI: Z = - 5.105, p < 0.001 and TOS: Z = - 5.979, p < 0.001; OSI: Z = - 5.862, p < 0.001). In only OCD group, illness duration was correlated with TOS and OSI (r0 = 0.44, p = 0.023, n = 26 and r0 = 0.44, p = 0.026, n = 26 respectively) but not with TAS. Conclusion: Our study found an overall oxidative imbalance shifted towards antioxidant side in OCD which may be due to either a rebound phenomenon or chronicity of the condition. © 2007 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Objective: To determine the significance of the A218C polymorphism of the tryptophan hydroxylase (TPH) gene in migraine. Methods: Fifty-nine migraineurs and 62 healthy controls were included in the study, and polymerase chain reaction - restriction fragment length polymorphism assays were used to determine TPH A218C polymorphism. Results: There was no association between TPH gene polymorphism and gender, family history of migraine and epilepsy, or aura. There was no significant difference between the allele frequencies of both groups (p > 0.05). A significant difference was found between the genotypes of the migraineurs and controls regarding the AA genotype. Homozygosity for the C allele or heterozygosity for the A or C was not associated with the occurrence of migraine (p > 0.05), but homozygosity for the A allele was less frequent in the migraineurs (p = 0.02). Conclusion: Since it is unlikely that TPH polymorphism alters serotonin biosynthesis, its association with migraine may be attributed to linkage disequilibrium with a functional variant within the TPH gene or a nearby gene. (C) 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Neuroleptic malignant syndrome (NMS) is the rarest and most serious of the neuroleptic-induced movement disorders. We describe a case of neuroleptic malignant syndrome (NMS) associated with the use of ziprasidone. Although conventional neuroleptics are more frequently associated with NMS, atypical antipsychotic drugs like ziprasidone may also be a cause. The patient is a 24-year-old male with a history of schizophrenia who developed signs and symptoms of NMS after 2 days of treatment with an 80-mg/day dose of orally administrated ziprasidone. This case is the earliest (second day of treatment) NMS due to ziprasidone reported in the literature.

Objective In the present study, we aimed to investigate whether nitric oxide (NO) levels and activities of xanthine oxidase (XO), superoxide dismutase (SOD), and adenosine deaminase (ADA) are associated with Panic disorder (PD) as well as impact of psychopharmacological treatments on NO, SOD, ADA, and XO levels in PD. Method In this study, 32 patients and 20 healthy controls were included. The serum levels of NO, XO, SOD, and ADA were measured in the patients and controls. The patients were treated with antidepressant. Results ADA and XO levels of the patients were significantly higher than the controls. SOD levels of the patients were significantly lower than the controls but the difference was not statistically significant. Although NO levels of the patients were higher than the controls, the difference was not statistically significant. There was no correlation between PAS and the parameters studied (SOD, ADA, XO, and NO) of the patients. After 8 weeks of antidepressant treatment, ADA and SOD activities were increased whereas NO and XO levels decreased significantly. Conclusion ADA, XO activity may have a pathophysiological role in PD, and prognosis of PD. Activity of these enzymes may be used to monitor effects of the antidepressant treatment. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

To assess whether a relationship existed between the T102C polymorphism of 5-HT2A receptor gene and temporomandibular dysfunction.Sixty-three patients with temporomandibular dysfunction, and 54 healthy volunteer controls were included in the study. Molecular analysis of the T102C polymorphism of the 5-HT2A receptor gene was performed using PCR technique.The C/C genotype was over represented in the patients whereas T/T genotype was over represented in the controls (P0.05). The genotype distribution of the patients who had temporomandibular dysfunction was not different than those who did not have temporomandibular dysfunction (P0.05).The T102C polymorphism may be involved in the etiology of temporomandibular dysfunction. The overrepresentation of the C/C variant of 5-HT2A receptor gene in temporomandibular dysfunction suggests a possible role of the serotonergic system in this disease, particularly at the receptor level.

Evidence is accumulating for a possible role of nitric oxide (NO) in schizophrenia. Adrenomedullin (AM) induces vasorelaxation by activating adenylate cyclase and also by stimulating the release of NO. AM immune reactivity is present in the brain consistent with a role as neurotransmitter. We aimed to examine plasma levels of nitrite (a metabolite of NO) and AM in schizophrenic patients. Eighty-two patients with schizophrenia and 21 healthy control subjects were included in this study. DSM-IV diagnosis of chronic schizophrenia was established on the basis of independent structured clinical interviews and review of records by two qualified psychiatrists which included the Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale (BPRS), The Scale for the Assessment of Negative Symptoms (SANS) and The Scale for the Assessment of Positive Symptoms (SAPS). Total nitrite and AM have been studied in plasma. The mean values of plasma nitrite and AM levels in schizophrenic group were significantly higher than control values, respectively (P=0.03, P