Frequency and transmission of glutamate receptors GRIK2 and GRIK3 polymorphisms in patients with obsessive compulsive disorder

Several lines of evidence suggest that obsessive compulsive disorder (OCD) could be the consequence of glutamatergic dysfunction. We performed a case-control study in 156 patients and 141 controls and the transmission disequilibrium test in 124 parent-offspring trios to search for association between OCD and two kainate receptors, GRIK2 and GRIK3. Using three single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) in GRIK2 and one in GRIK3, we found no evidence for association in case-control or family-based analyses. Only the GRIK2 SNP 1867, recently associated with autism, was less transmitted than expected (p<0.03), supporting a functional role for this variant. These findings suggest the need for further investigation of the role of GRIK2 in OCD.