Schizophrenia

A mental disorder characterized by a fragmentation of cognitive processes and personality, leading to a complex array of symptoms. It often manifests in adolescence and can be triggered by stress, with symptoms appearing and disappearing in episodes.

Auditory hallucinations, which are often perceived as internal voices or ‘inner speech’, are one of the hallmark positive symptoms of schizophrenia.

These are symptoms that are present in individuals with schizophrenia, but are absent in healthy individuals. They include thought disorders, stereotyped behaviours, poverty of affect, cognitive impairment and temporal disorientation.

These symptoms are characterized by reductions in normal behaviour. They include poverty of affect (decreased emotional expression), cognitive impairment and temporal disorientation.

The concordance rate for monozygotic (identical) twins in schizophrenia around 48% is significantly higher than for dizygotic twins. This suggests that genetic factors play a significant role in the development of schizophrenia.

Tienari's study showed that children adopted away from 'schizophrenic' mothers had an 8% chance of developing schizophrenia, compared to 1% for children adopted from 'normal' mothers. This suggests that both genetic predisposition and environmental factors contribute to the development of schizophrenia.

The genetic basis of schizophrenia is complex, involving thousands of risk loci. This indicates that multiple genes contribute to the development of schizophrenia, making it challenging to understand the exact mechanisms.

The "pathway disease" concept proposes that schizophrenia is not caused by a single gene, but rather by a combination of genes, environmental factors, and developmental processes that interact in complex ways to create the disorder.

Schizophrenia is not a single condition but arises from a complex interaction between genetic predispositions and environmental triggers.

Schizophrenia is a complex mental disorder where the brain's normal functioning is disrupted, leading to a range of symptoms that affect thinking, behavior, and emotions. People with schizophrenia often have difficulty distinguishing between reality and fantasy.

Positive symptoms are the additional behaviors or experiences that occur in individuals with schizophrenia, which are not present in healthy individuals.

Negative symptoms are the absence or reduction of normal behaviors in individuals with schizophrenia. This can include experiencing a flat affect, reduced motivation, and difficulty speaking or initiating social interactions.

The temporal lobe in the brain plays a crucial role in aspects of memory, language processing, and auditory perception. In individuals with schizophrenia, abnormalities in this area are strongly associated with positive symptoms, particularly auditory hallucinations.

The prefrontal cortex is a brain region involved in higher-level cognitive functions like executive control, planning, and decision-making. In individuals with schizophrenia, dysfunction in this area is associated with negative symptoms.

The basal ganglia are brain structures involved in motor control and reward processing. Antipsychotic medications, which are used to treat schizophrenia, primarily target this area of the brain.

Dopamine and glutamate are neurotransmitters that play vital roles in various brain functions. In schizophrenia, there are imbalances in these neurotransmitters. Dopamine tends to be increased in the basal ganglia, while glutamate and GABA are diminished in the prefrontal cortex.

A protein involved in regulating dopamine levels in the brain. It's implicated in schizophrenia due to disrupted dopamine homeostasis.

An enzyme responsible for breaking down dopamine in the brain.

A family of proteins that are involved in cell communication, growth, and differentiation. It's implicated in schizophrenia, possibly due to disrupted development and connectivity in the brain.

The hypothesis that stress can trigger or contribute to the onset of schizophrenia, especially in individuals with a genetic predisposition.

A phenomenon observed in individuals with schizophrenia, where their cortisol levels, stress hormones, do not respond to stressors as expected.

A structural abnormality found in the brains of some individuals with schizophrenia, where the fluid-filled spaces called ventricles are larger than normal. This is thought to reflect a decrease in brain tissue volume.

A specific area of the brain that is often affected in schizophrenia, showing a reduction in volume. The hippocampus is crucial for memory, learning, and emotional regulation.

The hypothesis that schizophrenia is caused by an early, possibly prenatal, developmental abnormality that affects the brain. This abnormality is not due to degeneration of existing brain tissue, but rather a disruption of normal brain development.

A theory suggesting that schizophrenia is caused by excessive dopamine activity in specific brain regions like the mesolimbic and mesocortical pathways.

A class of drugs used to treat psychosis, particularly schizophrenia, by blocking dopamine receptors in the brain.

The phenomenon where individuals with schizophrenia show an increase in dopamine metabolites in their cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) after taking antipsychotic medications.

A controversial aspect of the dopamine hypothesis where there is inconsistent evidence supporting higher levels of dopamine or dopamine receptor numbers in individuals with schizophrenia.

The delay observed between when antipsychotic medication is started and when its full therapeutic effect is seen, potentially due to changes in dopaminergic pathways over time.

A genetic factor linked to neuronal migration, its malfunction is associated with lissencephaly, a disorder characterized by smooth brain surface, suggesting a role in brain development and organization.

Antipsychotic medications, particularly typical ones, work by blocking dopamine receptors, thus reducing dopamine activity in the brain. This is thought to be beneficial in treating schizophrenia symptoms, especially positive ones, as dopamine hyperactivity in certain brain regions is associated with these symptoms.

Clozapine, an atypical antipsychotic, has shown promising results in treating schizophrenia, particularly in patients who have failed to respond to traditional antipsychotics. It's valuable in managing a wide range of symptoms and improving patient outcomes.

Schizophrenia, a complex condition, arises from a combination of environmental and genetic factors. This intricate interplay between nature and nurture shapes an individual's susceptibility to the disorder.

An enzyme involved in dopamine metabolism. Its less stable form, methionine 108, is linked to higher synaptic dopamine levels, while the more stable form, valine 108, is associated with schizophrenia and cognitive deficits.

A gene involved in neuronal development and migration. Its disruption is linked to schizophrenia and other psychiatric disorders.

A hypothesis suggesting that schizophrenia arises from a functional imbalance between the prefrontal cortex (PFC) and subcortical dopamine systems. The PFC may be hypoactive, leading to less inhibition of hyperactive subcortical systems.

A chromosomal alteration that can result in DNA breaks and rearrangements. It can lead to gene disruptions, such as the disruption of DISC1.

The network of proteins that interact with DISC1 and may be involved in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia.