Genes that increase the risk of schizophrenic

Researchers at Massachusetts General Hospital and the Harvard Medical School found that the risks increased when these DNA parts code proteins that help brain cells communicate effectively were cut off.

Skizophrenia is a complex and variable mental state, and scientists hope that identifying genetic and environmental risk factors will help them find better treatments.

Scientists say their discovery may only be the tip of the iceberg, as they suspect their genome analysis will reveal more DNA that has a role in the development of schizophrenia.

Antipsychotic treatment may be very effective, but long - term use is accompanied by atrophy, so the development of new drugs to treat schizophrenicism can bring great improvement in life to those who live with it.

The development of schizophrenic drugs has had limited progress over the past 50 years, but in the last decade we have started making genetic advances that help us better understand mechanisms that support this disorder. The main goal of our research is to understand the genetic causes of schizophrenicia and to motivate the development of new therapies “, said Dr. Singh from Harward Medical School.

To that end, he and his team have done one of the biggest genetic tests on schizophrenics ever performed.

“for the first time, we were able to identify the 10 genes that, when destroyed, dramatically increase the risk of schizophrenia”, Singh said.

More important, two of these 10 genes contain instructions on the production of the body's special protein.

These proteins, called glucose receptors, are one of the most important components of the way brain cells talk to each other.

Many antipsychotics currently operate by changing dopamine levels, another neurotransmitter that is involved in schizophrenic.

The interaction between glucose and dopamine receptors has been studied for its importance for the function of precontral cortex.

Paracontral cortex represents the front of the frontal lobby, an essential center for behavior control, initiative, motivation, and emotional expression.

<x) Furthermore, our analyses showed that there are much more such genes our search is beginning, “said Singh.