DRD2 Gene-141C insertion/deletion polymorphism among schizophrenia patients: The first investigation in Palembang, Indonesia

Introduction: Schizophrenia remains one of the most common mental health disorders, affecting people worldwide. Its causes comprise environmental risk factors to genetic risk factors. One of the candidate genes for schizophrenia is the dopamine D2 receptor (DRD2) gene. There are several single-nucleotide polymorphisms found in the gene, with-141 C insertion/deletion polymorphism as one of the most commonly investigated polymorphisms. This study is the first to investigate the DRD2 gene-141 C insertion/deletion polymorphism among schizophrenia patients in Palembang, Indonesia. Materials and Methods: Eighty schizophrenia patients from the only national reference mental hospital in the South Sumatra area, Ernaldi Bahar Mental Hospital, participated in this cross-sectional study. DRD2 gene-141C insertion/deletion polymorphism (DD, DI and II) was detected using restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis. Results: The-141 C insertion or DD genotype was less frequent (n = 4; 5%) compared to the II genotype (n = 25; 31.25%) and-141 C deletion or DI (n = 51; 63.75%) as the most frequent genotype found. Conclusion: This study is one of the few studies in the Indonesian population investigating the DRD2 gene-141 C insertion/deletion polymorphism. With a small sample size in consideration, our findings suggest that this polymorphism is prevalent in the Indonesian population.