Schizophrenia News and Research

Latest Schizophrenia News and Research

Newly developed ChiTaRS database can collect cases of druggable fusion targets

When sections from two separate genes merge due to various factors, such as translocation or splicing, the hybrid that is formed is called a gene fusion. In recent years, it has been discovered that these fusion events play a vital role in the development of cancers and other complex diseases.

20 Nov 2019

New brain research by UTHealth student was showcased at Neuroscience 2019

Brain research by a student in a laboratory at McGovern Medical School at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) was singled out for special attention at the Society for Neuroscience (SfN) annual meeting in Chicago Oct. 19-23.

20 Nov 2019

New light-based method to capture the epicenter of neural activity in the brain

Researchers from Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia and University of Salento, both in Lecce, Italy, and Harvard Medical School in Boston have developed a new light-based method to capture and pinpoint the epicenter of neural activity in the brain.

19 Nov 2019

High-fat maternal diet can cause life-long changes in the fetal brain

A study team at MedUni Vienna’s Center for Brain Research has found that high-fat maternal diets can cause life-long changes in the brain of the unborn offspring.

18 Nov 2019

Dopamine D2 receptor modulates Wnt expression, controls cell proliferation

The dopamine D2 receptor has a previously unobserved role in modulating Wnt expression and control of cell proliferation, according to a new study from the George Washington University and the University of Pittsburgh.

14 Nov 2019

Using AI to improve psychiatric care

A new paper in Schizophrenia Bulletin shows that artificial intelligence (AI) can help doctors to diagnose the mental health of patients with speed and accuracy. The new app designed for mobiles has been developed to improve patient monitoring using cues picked up from their speech, and is based on machine-learning tools.

13 Nov 2019

Resistant schizophrenia associated with low IQ and family history

According to a new study published on November 12, 2019, in the journal Molecular Psychiatry, individuals with schizophrenia resistant to treatment are more likely to have a family history and a lower IQ compared to other schizophrenic patients. This finding could help design more effective therapies for this subgroup of patients, as for instance, drugs that improve mental processes.

12 Nov 2019

Chronic psychosocial adversity impairs dopamine production

People exposed to a lifetime of psychosocial adversity may have an impaired ability to produce the dopamine levels needed for coping with acutely stressful situations.

12 Nov 2019

Collaborative study shows sex-specific processes in schizophrenia and bipolar disorder

Recent studies have found a high genetic similarity of the psychiatric diseases schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, whose disease-specific changes in brain cells show an overlap of more than 70 percent.

12 Nov 2019

Polygenic risk score improves psychosis risk prediction, study finds

A new study led by researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill has found that that using a polygenic risk score based on data from genome-wide association studies improves psychosis risk prediction in persons meeting clinical high-risk criteria.

12 Nov 2019

Smoking causes… schizophrenia?

Yes, we all know smoking is the cause of lung cancer, throat cancer and many other deadly conditions, but it turns out that smoking also puts a person at risk of depression and schizophrenia as well, according to a new study published in the journal Psychological Medicine on November 6, 2019.

7 Nov 2019

For young people with psychosis, early intervention is crucial

Andrew Echeguren, 26, had his first psychotic episode when he was 15. He was working as an assistant coach at a summer soccer camp for kids when the lyrics coming out of his iPod suddenly morphed into racist and homophobic slurs, telling him to harm others — and himself.

6 Nov 2019

Continuity of care can improve health outcomes for patients with severe mental illness

The chances of a patient with a serious mental illness ending up in hospital because of their condition are reduced by almost 40 per cent if they have a care plan, according to the research.

4 Nov 2019

Study uncovers cause for spatial-memory deficits in people with Down syndrome

Professor Juan Lerma's group, from the UMH-CSIC Institute of Neurosciences, in Alicante, has identified the gene called GRIK1, fundamental in the balance between excitation and inhibition in the brain, as one of the causes for people with Down syndrome having spatial orientation problems.

1 Nov 2019

Study shows how infections during pregnancy are linked to psychiatric disorders

The mother's health is very important for the fetus's brain development during pregnancy. Many factors play key roles for healthy brain development, including nutrition, stress, hormonal balance and the mother's immune system.

30 Oct 2019

Discovery of causal link between hydrogen sulfide and schizophrenia

Researchers from the RIKEN Center for Brain Science in Japan have found certain chemical markers that are associated with schizophrenia. They worked with lab mice with models of schizophrenia as well as post mortem brain specimens of persons with schizophrenia. The study titled, “Excess hydrogen sulfide and polysulfides production underlies a schizophrenia pathophysiology,” was published in the latest issue of the journal EMBO Molecular Medicine.

28 Oct 2019

MPST enzyme levels in hair could be a good biomarker for schizophrenia

Working with model mice, post-mortem human brains, and people with schizophrenia, researchers at the RIKEN Center for Brain Science in Japan have discovered that a subtype of schizophrenia is related to abnormally high levels hydrogen sulfide in the brain.

28 Oct 2019

How the SETD1A gene produces schizophrenia in mice

A new study published in the journal Neuron on October 9, 2019 reports that scientists have unlocked part of the secrets of the SETD1A gene – how mutations in the gene put the individual at risk for the condition.

26 Oct 2019

Socially housed and isolated mice may be poor research models for humans

Animal models can serve as gateways for understanding many human communication disorders. Insights into the genetic paths possibly responsible for conditions such as autism and schizophrenia often begin by studying acoustic behavior in mice.

25 Oct 2019

Unhealthy gut microbiome reduces brain synaptic pruning, impairs learning

A new study by Weill Cornell Medicine and Cornell University has come up with more explanations of how gut microbes communicate with the brain neurons. The study, published in the journal Nature on October 23, 2019, examined the brains of mouse models and found that when the gut microbiome is significantly reduced, there are changes in gene expression in the brain’s microglial cells.

24 Oct 2019