INVESTIGATING THE ASSOCIATION BETWEEN DAT1 RS27072 POLYMORPHISM AND SUSCEPTIBILITY TO ATTENTION DEFICIT HYPERACTIVITY DISORDER AMONG CHILDREN FROM NORTHWEST OF IRAN: A CASE-CONTROL STUDY

Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is the common mental disorder
in childhood which affects 3-7 percent of children all over the world. Both genetic and environmental
factors contribute to this disorder. Among the genes involved in the incidence of ADHD, dopaminergic
pathway genes can be mentioned. Dopamine is the most important neurotransmitter that plays an
important role in modulating the cognition, mood, and motor function of the brain. DAT1 or SLC6A3
gene (dopamine transporter gene) is involved in the dopaminergic pathway and harbors several
polymorphisms, among them the rs27072 is located in the 3'-UTR region of the gene. The purpose of
this study was to investigate the association between DAT1 3'UTR-rs27072 polymorphism and ADHD
susceptibility among children from Northwest of Iran.
Materials & Methods: This case-control study involved 196 ADHD children and 140 controls. DNA
was extracted from blood samples of children. Then, we investigated the DAT1 rs27072 polymorphism
among patients and control children using PCR-RFLP method and evaluated the results by statistical
methods.
Results: Frequencies of genotypes GG, TT, and GT was 112 (57.73%), 8 (4.12%) and 74 (38.14%)
inpatient group and 74 (52.86%), 7 (5%) and 59 (42.14%) in control group, respectively. According to
the results, there was no significant association between case and control groups (p>0.05).
Conclusion: The results of this study indicate that there is no significant association between DAT1
rs27072 polymorphism and ADHD in children from Northwest of Iran.