Role of ethnicity in antipsychotic-induced weight gain and tardive dyskinesia: Genes or environment?

Aim: This study explored the role of self-reported ethnicity and genetic ancestry on antipsychotic (AP)-induced weight gain and tardive dyskinesia (TD) in schizophrenia. Patients and methods: Ethnicity was determined by self-report as well as Structure analysis of 190 SNPs selected from HapMap3, genotyped using a customized Illumina BeadChip. Age, gender, baseline weight and AP response using Brief Psychiatric Rating Scale were assessed. Multivariate regression models for AP-induced weight gain and TD, based on the Abnormal Involuntary Movement Scale were constructed. Results: African-American ethnicity (self-report, p = 0.021 and Structure analysis, p = 0.042) predicted AP-induced weight gain but not TD (self-report, p = 0.408 and Structure analysis, p = 0.714). Conclusion: Self-reported African-American ethnicity seemed to better predict AP-induced weight gain in schizophrenia compared with genetic ancestry, suggesting a possible role of environmental in addition to genetic factors. Future larger studies are needed to clarify specific gene-environment mechanisms mediating the effect of ethnicity on AP-induced weight gain.