Biomedical subjects

Ching-Jui Chang

Publications and source records attributed to Ching-Jui Chang.

5 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2005

A functional polymorphism in the promoter region of the tryptophan hydroxylase gene is associated with alcohol dependence in one aboriginal group in Taiwan.

BACKGROUND: Polymorphisms within intron 7 of the tryptophan hydroxylase (TPH1) gene were found to be associated with alcohol dependence in different ethnic groups, including the aboriginal Bunun group in Taiwan. This study aimed to identify genetic variants at the TPH1 locus and to examine their associations with alcoholism. We hypothesized that the polymorphism of TPH1 gene is functional and influences the human circadian rhythm to contribute to the pathophysiology of alcohol dependence. METHODS: DNA from the Taiwanese Han and Bunun was subjected to sequence for screening genetic variation in the coding and promoter regions of the TPH1 locus. Polymorphisms among individuals with alcohol dependence and control subjects in two ethnic groups in Taiwan were investigated. RESULTS: Three variants in the TPH1 promoter region were identified, and the markers are in complete linkage disequilibrium in both populations. Positive associations at both allelic and genotypic levels were obtained between case and control groups in the Bunun. Expression studies demonstrated that the variants indeed affected reporter gene activity in human choriocarcinoma and colon adenocarcinoma cell lines. CONCLUSIONS: Polymorphisms in the promoter region may influence the function of the TPH1 gene and further influence the proclivity of alcohol dependence in one ethnic group in Taiwan. The associations between TPH1 genotypes and alcoholism may deserve further investigation.

Adult↗

PubMed2005

Development of a chinese version of the Yale-Brown obsessive compulsive scale for heavy drinking.

BACKGROUND: Measurement of craving is an important component in the investigation of the etiology and clinical pictures of alcoholism and dependence of other substances in different cultures. The aim of this study was to develop a Chinese version of the Yale-Brown Obsessive Compulsive Scale for heavy drinking (YBOCS-hd-C), the instrument most frequently used in assessing the severity of alcohol craving in Taiwan. METHODS: Four hundred twenty Han Chinese (220 with alcohol use disorders) and 218 Bunun aborigines (150 with alcohol use disorders) in Taiwan were interviewed by mental health professionals with the YBOCS-hd-C and a Chinese version of the World Health Organization Schedules for Clinical Assessment in Neuropsychiatry to establish the psychiatric diagnosis. Validity and reliability of the YBOCS-hd-C were examined. RESULTS: The YBOCS-hd-C was found to have acceptable interrater reliability (intraclass correlation, 0.89-0.96), internal consistency (Cronbach's alpha = 0.99), construct validity, concurrent validity, and cross-cultural validity. The correlations between 10 items of the YBOCS-hd-C and 11 items of the World Health Organization Schedules for Clinical Assessment in Neuropsychiatry adjusted for age, gender, and ethnicity ranged from 0.39 to 1.00. The YBOCS-hd-C also discriminated effectively among individuals with alcohol dependence, alcohol abusers, and normal drinkers. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrated that the YBOCS-hd-C is a reliable and valid instrument for assessing the extent of craving for alcohol in Taiwanese Han and Bunun individuals.

Adult↗

PubMed2003

Zolpidem-induced distortion in visual perception.

OBJECTIVE: To describe a patient who developed visual perception distortion after a single dose of zolpidem. CASE SUMMARY: A 50-year-old Asian woman had been prescribed conjugated estrogen 1 tablet daily for hormone replacement therapy and tricalcium phosphate twice daily for osteoporosis. One day, she took zolpidem 10 mg for insomnia as well as acetaminophen 500 mg for headache at bedtime and began to have visual perception distortion (e.g., the shapes of objects were twisted, houses were crooked) within 20 minutes, lasting for approximately 30 minutes, and then her vision returned to normal. She only partially recalled the event. She had never taken zolpidem before, and she had not had any such disturbances in the past. DISCUSSION: There have been 21 case reports of zolpidem-related psychotic symptoms in the literature; however, the exact mechanism by which zolpidem may cause visual perception changes is undetermined. Many factors have been correlated with zolpidem-induced visual experiences, such as pharmacokinetic factors, gender, age, and hypoalbuminemia. This patient shared certain similarities such as gender, dosage, and time of onset and duration of adverse reactions. CONCLUSIONS: An objective causality assessment revealed that the zolpidem-induced visual perception distortion in this patient was probable. Clinicians should be aware of the potential for visual perception distortion, as this is an uncommon adverse effect.

Female↗

PubMed2002

Morbidity risk of psychiatric disorders among the first degree relatives of schizophrenia patients in Taiwan.

This study aimed to assess the boundaries of the schizophrenia spectrum and whether inclusion of such phenotypes increases power for linkage analysis of schizophrenia. Participants were 234 first degree relatives (FDRs) of 94 schizophrenia probands in Northern Taiwan who completed a direct interview using the Diagnostic Interview for Genetic Studies (DIGS). Based on best estimate diagnosis, the morbidity risk in the relatives for schizophrenia was 2.5 percent (Weinberg's shorter method) or 3.9 percent (Kaplan-Meier estimate). Depending on the stringency of diagnosis, lifetime prevalence was 2.6 percent to 4.7 percent for schizotypal personality disorder, 3.4 percent to 8.6 percent for paranoid personality disorder, and 1.3 percent to 3.4 percent for schizoid personality disorder. These figures are significantly higher than the corresponding figures in the general population. However, none of the recurrence risk ratio for any spectrum that included both schizophrenia and a personality disorder (3.0 to 5.9) was greater than that of schizophrenia alone (9.3 to 14.4). Thus, including schizophrenia-related personality disorders in the spectrum did not increase power for linkage analysis of schizophrenia.

Adolescent↗

PubMed2002

Deficits in sustained attention in schizophrenia and affective disorders: stable versus state-dependent markers.

OBJECTIVE: The authors compared sustained attention deficits measured by the Continuous Performance Test in patients with various affective disorders and patients with schizophrenia and examined whether Continuous Performance Test deficits in patients with affective disorders improve with remission of affective disorder symptoms. METHOD: Patients with schizophrenia (N=41), major depression without psychotic features (N=22), bipolar disorder without psychotic features (N=22), and bipolar disorder with psychotic features (N=46) completed Continuous Performance Test sessions with an undegraded version of the test and a 25% degraded version in which the stimulus images were visually distorted. Subjects were also interviewed with the Chinese version of the Diagnostic Interview for Genetic Studies. All inpatients with schizophrenia (N=41) and bipolar disorder (N=15) were assessed both at admission and discharge. Subjects' Continuous Performance Test scores were standardized in comparison with scores for a community sample of 345 subjects, with adjustment for age, sex, and level of education. RESULTS: Compared with the general population, all patient groups except the group with nonpsychotic major depression were significantly impaired in their ability to discriminate target stimuli from nontarget stimuli on the Continuous Performance Test. Patients with schizophrenia had the severest impairment, followed by patients with bipolar disorder with psychotic features and those with bipolar disorder without psychotic features. From admission to discharge, Continuous Performance Test deficits in schizophrenia remained unchanged, but inpatients with bipolar disorder showed significant improvement on the degraded Continuous Performance Test. All patients adopted a similar response criterion (the amount of perceptual evidence the person requires to decide that a stimulus is a target) to that in the general population, except that the patients with schizophrenia had a less stringent response criterion during the degraded Continuous Performance Test. CONCLUSIONS: Continuous Performance Test deficits are stable vulnerability indicators for schizophrenia, mediating indicators for bipolar disorder, and state-dependent indicators for major depression.

Adult↗