Polymorphisms of the CCK, CCKAR and CCKBR genes: an association with alcoholism study.

Objective: Cholecystokinin (CCK) plays an important role in the functioning of the central nervous system via an interaction with dopamine and other neurotransmitters. The dopaminergic system has been implicated in the maladaptive behaviors associated with drugs of abuse (e.g., alcohol and cocaine). We analyzed genetic variations in the promoter and coding regions of the CCK, CCKA-receptor (CCKAR) and CCKB-receptor (CCKBR) genes, and performed association analyses with alcoholism. Method: A total of 214 Japanese male patients with alcoholism (93 with delirium tremens, 49 with hallucinations, 38 with seizures and 83 without any of these symptoms) and 98 age-matched Japanese male controls were examined using PCR-based Single Strand Conformational Polymorphism (SSCP) analysis. Results: A total of 8 variants in the CCK gene, 11 variants in the CCKAR gene and 9 variants in the CCKBR gene were detected in the present study. Nominally significant differences between alcoholics and controls were found at the -85 ...