The A allele of rs9939609 in the FTO gene predisposes to increased body mass index (BMI) and obesity. Recently we showed an inverse association between the obesity related A allele of rs9939609 and alcohol dependence which was replicated by others. Since this finding raises a possibility that FTO may be associated with other psychiatric phenotypes, we aimed to examine association of rs9939609 w...

This study was aimed to investigate the effect of combined cancer gene therapy with exogenous tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) and cytosine deaminase (CD) suicide gene on laryngeal carcinoma cell line Hep-2 in vitro and in vivo. Transfection of the recombinant eukaryotic vectors of pcDNA3.1 (+) containing TNF-α and/or CD into Hep-2 cells resulted in expression of TNF-α and/or CD gene in vitr...

Gene therapy mediated by murine leukemia virus (MLV)-based replicating retrovirus vector (RRV) was previously proven to be highly effective in tumor cell killing, resulting in significant suppression of tumor growth in vivo. Recently, we developed a different form of RRV which is derived from another retrovirus, gibbon ape leukemia virus (GALV), as a cancer therapeutic agent. We compared the ge...

BACKGROUND In gene therapy, the use of RNA molecules as therapeutic agents has shown advantages over plasmid DNA, including higher levels of safety. However, transient nature of RNA has been a major obstacle in application of RNA in gene therapy. METHODS Here, we used the internal ribosomal entry site of encephalomyocarditis virus and the 3' non-translated region of Poliovirus to design an en...

Editing of the pre-mRNA for the serotonin receptor 2C (5-HT2CR) by site-specific adenosine deamination (A-to-I pre-mRNA editing) substantially increases the functional plasticity of this key neurotransmitter receptor and is thought to contribute to homeostatic mechanisms in neurons. 5-HT2CR mRNA editing generates up to 24 different receptor isoforms. The extent of editing correlates with 5-HT2C...

Mounting evidence supports the association between a polymorphism in the serotonin transporter gene promoter region (5-HTTLPR) and suicidal behaviour. Recently, a novel variant of the 5-HTTLPR L allele was identified. The previously unknown L(G) allele produced similar levels of gene expression to the S allele and might have been misclassified as a "high-expression" allele in previous associati...

In order to realise the full potential of cancer suicide gene therapy that allows the precise expression of suicide gene in cancer cells, we used a tissue specific Epithelial cell adhesion molecule (EpCAM) promoter (EGP-2) that directs transgene Herpes simplex virus-thymidine kinase (HSV-TK) expression preferentially in EpCAM over expressing cancer cells. EpCAM levels are considerably higher in...

Tryptophan hydroxylase-2 (TPH2) contributes to alterations in the function of neuronal serotonin (5-HT), which are associated with various psychopathologies, including major depressive disorder (MDD) or suicidal behavior. The methylation of a single CpG site in the promoter region of TPH2 affects gene expression. Suicide and MDD are strongly associated and genetic factors are at least partially...

There is growing evidence that a functional polymorphism in the serotonin transporter gene (5-HTTLPR) moderates the impact of negative life events (e.g., childhood abuse) on the development of depression. However, it is unclear whether the gene x environment interaction predicts suicide attempts specifically. In addition, previous studies have not examined different forms of childhood abuse sep...