Background: Angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE), a key enzyme of the renin-angiotensin system, can modulate dopamine turnover in the midbrain. Previous studies have revealed an association between ACE gene insertion/deletion (I/D) polymorphism and chronic schizophrenia, yet results are conflicting.
Objective: The primary objective of this study was to examine whether the ACE gene I/D polymorphism is associated with first-episode patients with schizophrenia (FEP) in a Chinese Han population.
Methods: The presence of the polymorphism was determined in 220 FEP and 538 healthy controls using a case-control design. We assessed the psychopathology in 212 FEP using the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS).
Results: The allelic and genotypic frequencies of the ACE gene I/D polymorphism did not significantly differ between FEP and healthy controls (both p>0.05). However, the negative PANSS symptom was significantly higher in FEP with the D/D genotype than those with I/D and I/I genotypes (all p<0.05) even after Bonferroni corrections (all p<0.05). Furthermore, the D allele of the ACE gene was associated with higher negative PANSS symptom score in FEP.
Conclusions: Our results indicated that even though the ACE gene I/D polymorphism did not associate with FEP, it may play a role in susceptibility to the negative PANSS symptom of FEP in a Chinese Han population.
Keywords: First-episode patients with schizophrenia; Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale; angiotensin-converting enzyme; association; genetic polymorphism.
Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.