No association of the rs9722 C >T in the S100B gene and susceptibility to major depression in a Chinese population.

Objective: Astroglial-derived protein S100B is known to play important roles in axonal growth, neural plasticity, and energy regulation. Disturbance of these neurodevelopmental processes is proposed as one of the etiologies for mood disorder, and genetic polymorphisms of S100B have a possibility to be in susceptibility to major depressive disorder (MDD).

Method: We first investigated the association of the rs9722 C > T polymorphism of the S100B gene and susceptibility to MDD by comparing 152 major depressive patients with 150 healthy individuals in a Chinese population.

Results: The genotype frequencies of the S100B rs9722 C > T polymorphism were 30% (C/C), 56% (C/T), and 14% (T/T) in depressed patients, 32% (C/C), 53% (C/T), and 15% (T/T) in healthy volunteers, respectively. The allele frequencies of the S100B rs9722 C > T polymorphism were 58% (C allele) and 42% (T allele) in depressed patients, and 59% (C allele) and 41% (T allele) in healthy volunteers, respectively.

Conclusion: There were no significant differences in the genotype distribution and allele frequencies between major depressive patients and healthy individuals. S100B rs9722 C > T polymorphism appears not to be an important factor in susceptibility to MDD in a Chinese population.