We report on an association study between a tetranucleotide repeat polymorphism in the GABR beta1 gene and manic-depressive illness in a Spanish population. This gene may be an important candidate for bipolar affective disorders since severe GABergic alterations have been described in patients. Although our results do not reveal a clear evidence for association between manic-depressive illness and GABR beta1, we have found significant differences between patients and controls in the female subpopulation.