Further evidence of no association between Ser9Gly polymorphism of dopamine D3 receptor gene and schizophrenia

Dopamine D3 receptor (DRD3) was demonstrated to have important implications in schizophrenia, because it binds antipsychotic drugs and is abundant in the limbic system of the brain. Several groups attempted to find an association between a serine-to-glycine polymorphism at codon 9 of the DRD3 gene (Ser9Gly) and schizophrenia; however, the results were inconsistent. We conducted a case-control association study in Han Chinese schizophrenic patients from Taiwan, to examine the relationship of this serine-to-glycine polymorphism and schizophrenia. We noted no significant differences of genotype distribution, allele frequencies, or homozygosity proportion of this polymorphism between schizophrenic patients (N = 178) and controls (N = 100). When patients were divided according to sex, or presence or absence of family history, the differences were still not significant. Our study does not support the contention that the Ser9Gly polymorphism of the DRD3 gene plays a major role in schizophrenia.