Genetic factors regarding obsessive compulsive |
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Posted Date: 6/30/2009 |
Blog by: poost |
Viewed: 132
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Category: Mental Health Disorders » Obsessive Compulsive Disorder/OCD |
Obsessive compulsive disorder is a disease associated with severe anxiety experienced by the patients and in it they come at ease with developing certain behaviors.
The OCD is not clear like many other neurological diseases. The various factors considered to be responsible include environmental factors and genetics. The role of genetics is not completely understood but is still of great importance regarding this disorder. It is also considered to be related on genetic and biological basis with other neurological diseases like major depression, panic disorder and social phobias and generalized anxiety disorder. All of these diseases are considered to run in families and are thought to be inheritable.
Various studies and researches regarding this disease have shown that it has a definite tendency to run in families. No exact single gene has yet been identified but attempts are being made to locate the chiefly responsible gene. It is evident from research that the first degree relatives of a person suffering from OCD tend to have a greater risk of adopting this illness and also have an increased risk of suffering from major depression. So along with have some genetic basis which makes it a familial disease it shares some common traits with major depression.
Along with the study of familial predisposition to this disease different twin studies have also been carried out to test the hypothesis that whether this disease is distributed genetically or not. The studies show that the genetically identical twins have much greater risk of suffering from this disorder if one of them has also developed this ailment. The risk is much less in fraternal twins as they do have less common genetics but still they are quite high risk individuals. After them the first degree relatives are considered to be high risk as compared to the general population. They are considered to be at 9 fold greater risks then the normal population.
With advancements in the field of molecular genetics great developments have been made. According to researchers in the University of Michigan, university of Chicago and university of Toronto a gene which is responsible for glutamate transport called SLC1A1 has been found to be associated with the transmission of obsessive compulsive disorder. This gene encodes a protein EAAC1 which is responsible for the transport of glutamate in and out of the brain cells. This gene may also be responsible for the increased risk of OCD. Previous researches have shown a definite functional relationship between glutamate and the development of OCD. Brain imaging and spinal fluid studies following a comparison between OCD patients and healthy volunteers has shown the differences in glutamate systems also in the regions of the brain where protein EAAC1 is present. This shows that the gene SLC1A1 may be responsible for the transmission of obsessive compulsive disorder. The relationship to glutamate makes this gene the strongest candidate for the responsible gene of OCD.
The findings regarding the genetic basis of this disorder are quite exciting but still according to different researchers these findings are far away from influencing the treatment of this disease. There also has been found a strong association between variations at specific sights of the SLC1A1 gene and the early onset of OCD. Surprisingly these variations were more in boys than in girls. It also explains that why the early onset of OCD is more common in boys than in girls.
However it is still aimed to continue the research on OCD regarding the effects of glutamate and SLC1A1 gene as on the basis of medications effecting glutamate systems the treatment of OCD can be revolutionized.
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