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For the first time, Utah researchers have discovered a gene linked to an obsessive compulsive disorder.
Though the discovery was made in mice which pluck off their fur, the mechanism is probably similar in humans with OCD who pull out their hair.
Science Specialist Ed Yeates has more on the story.
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The new research is published in Neuron magazine. The online addition requires a subscription to view the entire article.
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The research team at the Eccles Institute of Human Genetics was actually studying genes which make body parts when they found the unexpected.
Using a process called gene targeting, Dr. Joy Greer and distinguished professor Dr. Mario Capecchi at the University of Utah isolated one gene which, when defective, apparently interferes with the grooming behavior of a mouse.
MARIO CAPECCHI, PHD: "THEY EXCESSIVELY GROOM. THEY JUST CONTINUE TO GROOM UNTIL THEY REMOVE HAIR AND HAVE LESIONS."
One mouse has even plucked out fur around its nose and eyes.
And it's not just mice. Dogs can lick off their fur. Parrots can pluck out their feathers.
In humans, this obsessive compulsive behavior is called Tricotelamania.
"THE BEHAVIOR IS ALMOST IDENTICAL IN A MOUSE AND A HUMAN."
"THESE PATIENTS - THE CHILDREN FOR EXAMPLE - PULL OUT THEIR HAIR AND THEY JUST CONTINUALLY PULL OUT THEIR HAIR UNTIL THEY BECOME COMPLETELY BALD."
The discovery now allows researchers to look specifically at the overactive circuitry in the brain where this gene and others like it are expressed.
In the mouse, the gene appears to control not how the animal grooms itself, but how much. A defective gene may interfere with a neurological message which simply says stop grooming.
Similar genetic mechanisms in humans may open or close circuits for all kinds of OCD's, like compulsive hand washing or someone who continually returns to their house or car to check the locks.
In any case, Dr. Capecchi says identifying the genes responsible will now make it a lot easier to develop new therapies.
Dr. Capecchi: "NOW WE KNOW A GENE AND WE CAN DIRECT THE DRUGS TO THAT TARGET. AND THAT'S VERY DIFFERENT FROM SIMPLY TRYING LOTS OF DIFFERENT DRUGS AND HOPING SOMETHING WORKS."
The Utah discovery was part of a joint research project in collaboration with the McGovern Institute for Brain Research at M.I.T.
Jan. 3, 2002
