Investigation of Methylation Levels in COMT Gene Promoter among Smokers and Opium Addicted Individuals Undergoing Methadone Treatment
1.1. Background: Previous studies have demonstrated that the COMT gene is associated with alcohol, nicotine, and illicit sub stances. The aim of the present study was to examine the methyla tion status of a remarkable region in the COMT gene promoter in methadone-treated smokers and addicts. Methods: All male sam ples, including 30 smokers, 30 opium addicts receiving methadone treatment, and 30 healthy individuals, had their DNAs extracted from their whole blood and processed with a sodium bisulfite kit. 61 CpG dinucleotides were included in the study region and were sequenced. 1.2. Results: Results represented that within these CpG sites, only 25 CpG sites in the addicted group and 22 in the smoker group compared to the healthy controls indicated different methylation levels; however, none of these CpG sites had a statistically signif icant difference (P=0.281 and P= 0.329, respectively). The mean age of opium-addicted individuals and healthy controls had signif icant differences between the two groups (P=0.017). Demograph ical results revealed that methadone dosage correlated with the resident situation and libido dysfunction (P=0.032 and P=0.003, respectively). 1.3. Conclusion: In conclusion, the investigation of methylation levels at COMT gene promoter had no noticeable significance among smokers and methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) patients compared to the healthy controls; moreover, methadone dosage had significant correlations with demographical statuses in the MMT group.