Catechol-O-Methyltransferase Val158Met Polymorphism and Antisaccade Eye Movements in Schizophrenia

摘要

The catechol-O-methyltransferase (COMT) enzyme catabolizes dopamine. The val158met single nucleotide polymorphism (rs4680) in the COMT gene has received considerable attention as a candidate gene for schizophrenia as well as for frontally mediated cognitive functions. Antisaccade performance is a good measure of frontal lobe integrity. Deficits on the task are considered a trait marker for schizophrenia. The aim of this study was to investigate the association of COMT val158met polymorphism with antisaccade eye movements in schizophrenia patients and healthy controls. Schizophrenia patients (N = 105) and healthy controls (N = 95) underwent infrared oculographic assessment of antisaccades. Subjects were genotyped for COMT val158met and divided into 3 groups according to genotype (val/val, val/met, and met/met). Patients displayed significantly more reflexive errors, longer and more variable latency, and lower amplitude gain than controls (all P 0.1). There were no significant associations of genotype with measures of amplitude gain or spatial error (P > 0.2). The results suggest that COMT val158 carrier status is associated with better performance on the antisaccade task. Possible explanations of this finding are discussed.