Fresh data on enzyme research are presented in the report 'The ANKK1 kinase gene and psychiatric disorders.' "The TaqIA single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP, rs1800497), which is located in the gene that codes for the putative kinase ANKK1 (ANKK1) near the termination codon of the D2 dopamine receptor gene (DRD2; chromosome 11q22-q23), is the most studied genetic variation in a broad range of psychiatric disorders and personality traits. A large number of individual genetic association studies have found that the TaqIA SNP is linked to alcoholism and antisocial traits," researchers in Madrid, Spain report (see also Enzyme Research).

"In addition, it has also been related to other conditions such as schizophrenia, eating disorders, and some behavioral childhood disorders. The TaqIA A1 allele is mainly associated with addictions, antisocial disorders, eating disorders, and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorders, while the A2 allele occurs more frequently in schizophrenic and obsessive-compulsive patients. Current data show that the TaqIA polymorphism may be a marker of both DRD2 and ANKK1 genetic variants. ANKK1 would belong to a family of kinases involved in signal transduction. This raises the question of whether signaling players intervene in the pathophysiology of psychiatric disorders," wrote G. Ponce and colleagues, University Hospital.

The researchers concluded: "Basic research on the ANKK1 protein and its putative interaction with the D2 dopamine receptor could shed light on this issue."

Ponce and colleagues published their study in Neurotoxicity Research (The ANKK1 kinase gene and psychiatric disorders. Neurotoxicity Research, 2009;16(1):50-9).

For additional information, contact G. Ponce, Hospital Universitario, Unidad de Alcoholismo y Patologia Dual, Servicio de Psiquiatria, 12 de Octubre, Av de Cordoba s, n, Madrid, E-28041, Spain.

Publisher contact information for the journal Neurotoxicity Research is: Taylor & Francis Group Ltd, 2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxford OX14 4RN United Kingdom.