Schizophrenia News and Research

Latest Schizophrenia News and Research

N-cofilin molecule protects from neuronal disorders

Many neuronal disorders, including epilepsy, schizophrenia and lissencephaly – a form of mental retardation - result from abnormal migration of nerve cells during the development of the brain.

17 Sep 2007

Mouse model for schizophrenia

Scientists at Johns Hopkins have developed a mouse model for schizophrenia in which a mutated gene linked to schizophrenia can be turned on or off at will.

11 Sep 2007

Antidepressant citalopram shows promise in treating symptoms of dementia

Researchers have found surprising evidence that an antidepressant (citalopram) may perform as well as a commonly-prescribed antipsychotic (risperidone) in the alleviation of severe agitation and psychotic symptoms of dementia.

11 Sep 2007

Schizophrenia-linked gene keeps new adult brain cells under control

The study reveals that the gene, known as Disrupted-In-Schizophrenia 1 (DISC1), directs the incorporation of new neurons into the adult brain and keeps the process under control. The gene's newly discovered roles might help to explain why schizophrenia's symptoms generally arise in adolescence or early adulthood, the researchers suggested.

10 Sep 2007

New understanding of role of schizophrenia risk gene DISC1 in normal adult brains

How the gene that has been pegged as a major risk factor for schizophrenia and other mood disorders that affect millions of Americans contributes to these diseases remains unclear.

10 Sep 2007

Link found between a lack of vitamin D and pre-eclampsia

Researchers in the United States have found an association between vitamin D levels in pregnant women and the risk of pre-eclampsia; they say women who have a vitamin D deficiency early in their pregnancy are at risk from pre-eclampsia.

9 Sep 2007

Selection on genes underlying schizophrenia during human evolution

Several genes with strong associations to schizophrenia have evolved rapidly due to selection during human evolution, according to new research in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B (Wednesday 5 September 2007).

5 Sep 2007

New and very different schizophrenia drug shows promise

Scientists at Eli Lilly say the first human trial of a new schizophrenia drug shows promise for sufferers of the debilitating mental illness.

3 Sep 2007

Seroquel XR tablets approved in Netherlands for the treatment of schizophrenia

AstraZeneca today announced the Netherlands regulatory authority MEB (Medicines Evaluation Board) has approved Seroquel XR (quetiapine fumarate) Extended-Release Tablets, a once-daily medicine for the treatment of schizophrenia in adult patients.

29 Aug 2007

Risperdal approved for psychiatric conditions in children and adolescents

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved Risperdal (risperidone) for the treatment of schizophrenia in adolescents, ages 13 to 17, and for the short-term treatment of manic or mixed episodes of bipolar I disorder in children and adolescents ages 10 to 17.

24 Aug 2007

Antipsychotic drug Risperdal approved for use in children

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the U.S. has given approval for the antipsychotic drug Risperdal to be used to treat schizophrenia and bipolar disorder in children and teenagers.

23 Aug 2007

Neuregulin 1 gene linked to schizophrenia

Scientists have provided new insight into how a gene is related to schizophrenia.

12 Aug 2007

Scientists produce functioning neurons from human embryonic stem cells

Scientists with the Institute of Stem Cell Biology and Medicine at UCLA were able to produce from human embryonic stem cells a highly pure, large quantity of functioning neurons that will allow them to create models of and study diseases such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, prefrontal dementia and schizophrenia.

8 Aug 2007

Ddiscovery of a novel molecular switch offers potential for epilepsy

The discovery of a novel molecular switch that powerfully modulates nerve cell activity offers the potential for new mood disorder and epilepsy treatments, University of California, Irvine researchers report.

6 Aug 2007

How language relates to use of mental health services for California Latinos

An examination of usage of publicly sponsored mental health services by Spanish-speaking Latinos in San Diego revealed significant differences from use patterns by either English-speaking Latinos or Caucasians.

2 Aug 2007

Schizophrenia improved by mental and physical exercise

Scientists at Melbourne's Howard Florey Institute have shown that mental and physical exercise can improve behavioural deficits in schizophrenia and repair damaged chemical transmitter pathways in the brain.

1 Aug 2007

Hallucinations in schizophrenia linked to brain area that regulates emotion and processes human voices

For the first time, researchers using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) have found both structural and functional abnormalities in specific brain regions of schizophrenic patients who experience chronic auditory hallucinations, according to a study published in the August issue of Radiology.

1 Aug 2007

New risk genes for multiple sclerosis

Two new large-scale genomic studies have honed in on the main genetic pathway associated with multiple sclerosis (MS), while also uncovering new genetic variations in the disease and suggesting a possible link between MS and other autoimmune diseases.

1 Aug 2007

First mouse model of schizophrenia

Johns Hopkins researchers have genetically engineered the first mouse that models both the anatomical and behavioral defects of schizophrenia, a complex and debilitating brain disorder that affects over 2 million Americans.

1 Aug 2007

One joint as bad as five cigarettes

The latest research says the effects of a single cannabis 'joint' could damage the lungs as much as smoking up to five tobacco cigarettes one after another.

31 Jul 2007