Pharmacogenomics of Mood Stabilizers in the Treatment of Bipolar Disorder
- Alessio Squassina squassina{at}unica.it1
- Mirko Manchia mirkomanchia{at}unica.it1,2
- Maria Del Zompo delzompo{at}unica.it1,3
- 1Laboratory of Molecular Genetics, Unit of Clinical Pharmacology, Department of Neuroscience “B.B. Brodie”, University of Cagliari, sp8 Sestu-Monserrato, km. 0,700, Monserrato 09042, Cagliari, Italy
- 2Department of Psychiatry, Dalhousie University, 5909 Veterans Memorial Lane, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, B3H 2E2
- 3Unit of Clinical Pharmacology, University Hospital of Cagliari, Via Ospedale 46, 09124 Cagliari, Italy
Abstract
Bipolar disorder (BD) is a chronic and often severe psychiatric illness characterized by manic and depressive episodes. Among the most effective treatments, mood stabilizers represent the keystone in acute mania, depression, and maintenance treatment of BD. However, treatment response is a highly heterogeneous trait, thus emphasizing the need for a structured informational framework of phenotypic and genetic predictors. In this paper, we present the current state of pharmacogenomic research on long-term treatment in BD, specifically focusing on mood stabilizers. While the results provided so far support the key role of genetic factors in modulating the response phenotype, strong evidence for genetic predictors is still lacking. In order to facilitate implementation of pharmacogenomics into clinical settings (i.e., the creation of personalized therapy), further research efforts are needed.
- Received March 15, 2010.
- Accepted June 24, 2010.
- © 2010 Alessio Squassina et al.
