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Zhang Z, Jin P, Guo Z, Tu Z, Yang H, Hu M, Li Q, Liu X, Li W, Hou S. Integrated Analysis of Chromatin and Transcriptomic Profiling Identifies PU.1 as a Core Regulatory Factor in Microglial Activation Induced by Chronic Cerebral Hypoperfusion. Mol Neurobiol 2024; 61:2569-2589. [PMID: 37917300 PMCID: PMC11043206 DOI: 10.1007/s12035-023-03734-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2023] [Accepted: 10/20/2023] [Indexed: 11/04/2023]
Abstract
In addition to causing white matter lesions, chronic cerebral hypoperfusion (CCH) can also cause damage to gray matter, but the underlying molecular mechanisms remain largely unknown. In order to obtain a better understanding of the relationship between gene expression and transcriptional regulation alterations, novel upstream regulators could be identified using integration analysis of the transcriptome and epigenetic approaches. Here, a bilateral common carotid artery stenosis (BCAS) model was established for inducing CCH in mice. The spatial cognitive function of mice was evaluated, and changes in cortical microglia morphology were observed. RNA-sequencing (RNA-seq) and the assay for transposase-accessible chromatin with high-throughput sequencing (ATAC-seq) were performed on isolated mouse cortical brain tissue. Then, a systematic joint analysis of BCAS hypoperfusion-induced cortex-specific RNA-seq and ATAC-seq was conducted in order to assess the extent of the correlation between the two, and PU.1 was found to be greatly enriched through motif analysis and transcription factor annotation. Also, the core regulatory factor PU.1 induced by BCAS hypoperfusion was shown to be colocalized with microglia. Based on the above analysis, PU.1 plays a key regulatory role in microglial activation induced by CCH. And the transcriptome and epigenomic data presented in this study can help identify potential targets for future research exploring chronic hypoperfusion-induced brain injury.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zengyu Zhang
- Department of Neurology, Shanghai Pudong Hospital, Fudan University Pudong Medical Center, Shanghai, China
- Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Pengpeng Jin
- Department of Chronic Disease Management, Shanghai Pudong Hospital, Fudan University Pudong Medical Center, Shanghai, China
| | - Zimin Guo
- Department of Neurology, Shanghai Pudong Hospital, Fudan University Pudong Medical Center, Shanghai, China
- Shanghai Medical College, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Zhilan Tu
- Department of Neurology, Shanghai Pudong Hospital, Fudan University Pudong Medical Center, Shanghai, China
| | - Hualan Yang
- Department of Neurology, Shanghai Pudong Hospital, Fudan University Pudong Medical Center, Shanghai, China
| | - Mengting Hu
- Department of Neurology, Shanghai Pudong Hospital, Fudan University Pudong Medical Center, Shanghai, China
| | - Qinghua Li
- Department of Neurology, Shanghai Pudong Hospital, Fudan University Pudong Medical Center, Shanghai, China
| | - Xingdang Liu
- Department of Nuclear Medicine, Shanghai Pudong Hospital, Fudan University Pudong Medical Center, Shanghai, China
| | - Weiwei Li
- Institute of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Fudan University, Fudan University, Shanghai, China.
| | - Shuangxing Hou
- Department of Neurology, Shanghai Pudong Hospital, Fudan University Pudong Medical Center, Shanghai, China.
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Sæther LS, Szabo A, Akkouh IA, Haatveit B, Mohn C, Vaskinn A, Aukrust P, Ormerod MBEG, Eiel Steen N, Melle I, Djurovic S, Andreassen OA, Ueland T, Ueland T. Cognitive and inflammatory heterogeneity in severe mental illness: Translating findings from blood to brain. Brain Behav Immun 2024; 118:287-299. [PMID: 38461955 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2024.03.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2023] [Revised: 01/25/2024] [Accepted: 03/07/2024] [Indexed: 03/12/2024] Open
Abstract
Recent findings link cognitive impairment and inflammatory-immune dysregulation in schizophrenia (SZ) and bipolar (BD) spectrum disorders. However, heterogeneity and translation between the periphery and central (blood-to-brain) mechanisms remains a challenge. Starting with a large SZ, BD and healthy control cohort (n = 1235), we aimed to i) identify candidate peripheral markers (n = 25) associated with cognitive domains (n = 9) and elucidate heterogenous immune-cognitive patterns, ii) evaluate the regulation of candidate markers using human induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-derived astrocytes and neural progenitor cells (n = 10), and iii) evaluate candidate marker messenger RNA expression in leukocytes using microarray in available data from a subsample of the main cohort (n = 776), and in available RNA-sequencing deconvolution analysis of postmortem brain samples (n = 474) from the CommonMind Consortium (CMC). We identified transdiagnostic subgroups based on covariance between cognitive domains (measures of speed and verbal learning) and peripheral markers reflecting inflammatory response (CRP, sTNFR1, YKL-40), innate immune activation (MIF) and extracellular matrix remodelling (YKL-40, CatS). Of the candidate markers there was considerable variance in secretion of YKL-40 in iPSC-derived astrocytes and neural progenitor cells in SZ compared to HC. Further, we provide evidence of dysregulated RNA expression of genes encoding YKL-40 and related signalling pathways in a high neuroinflammatory subgroup in the postmortem brain samples. Our findings suggest a relationship between peripheral inflammatory-immune activity and cognitive impairment, and highlight YKL-40 as a potential marker of cognitive functioning in a subgroup of individuals with severe mental illness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Linn Sofie Sæther
- Norwegian Centre for Mental Disorders Research, Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway; Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway.
| | - Attila Szabo
- Norwegian Centre for Mental Disorders Research, Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway; K.G. Jebsen Centre for Neurodevelopmental Disorders, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Ibrahim A Akkouh
- Norwegian Centre for Mental Disorders Research, Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway; Department of Medical Genetics, Oslo University Hospital/University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Beathe Haatveit
- Norwegian Centre for Mental Disorders Research, Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway; Norwegian Centre for Mental Disorders Research, Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Christine Mohn
- Norwegian Centre for Mental Disorders Research, Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway; National Centre for Suicide Research and Prevention, Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Anja Vaskinn
- Norwegian Centre for Mental Disorders Research, Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway; Centre for Research and Education in Forensic Psychiatry, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway
| | - Pål Aukrust
- Research Institute of Internal Medicine, Oslo University Hospital, Rikshospitalet, Oslo, Norway; Section of Clinical Immunology and Infectious Diseases, Oslo University Hospital, Rikshospitalet, Oslo, Norway; Faculty of Medicine, University of Oslo, Norway
| | - Monica B E G Ormerod
- Norwegian Centre for Mental Disorders Research, Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway; Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo Norway
| | - Nils Eiel Steen
- Norwegian Centre for Mental Disorders Research, Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway; Norwegian Centre for Mental Disorders Research, Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway; Department of Psychiatric Research, Diakonhjemmet Hospital, Oslo, Norway
| | - Ingrid Melle
- Norwegian Centre for Mental Disorders Research, Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway; Norwegian Centre for Mental Disorders Research, Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Srdjan Djurovic
- Norwegian Centre for Mental Disorders Research, Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway; K.G. Jebsen Centre for Neurodevelopmental Disorders, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway; Department of Medical Genetics, Oslo University Hospital/University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Ole A Andreassen
- Norwegian Centre for Mental Disorders Research, Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway; Norwegian Centre for Mental Disorders Research, Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Torill Ueland
- Norwegian Centre for Mental Disorders Research, Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway; Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Thor Ueland
- Research Institute of Internal Medicine, Oslo University Hospital, Rikshospitalet, Oslo, Norway; Faculty of Medicine, University of Oslo, Norway; K.G. Jebsen Thrombosis Research and Expertise Centre, University of Tromsø, Tromsø, Norway
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3
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Chen Y, Li W, Lv L, Yue W. Shared Genetic Determinants of Schizophrenia and Autism Spectrum Disorder Implicate Opposite Risk Patterns: A Genome-Wide Analysis of Common Variants. Schizophr Bull 2024:sbae044. [PMID: 38616054 DOI: 10.1093/schbul/sbae044] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/16/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND HYPOTHESIS The synaptic pruning hypothesis posits that schizophrenia (SCZ) and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) may represent opposite ends of neurodevelopmental disorders: individuals with ASD exhibit an overabundance of synapses and connections while SCZ was characterized by excessive pruning of synapses and a reduction. Given the strong genetic predisposition of both disorders, we propose a shared genetic component, with certain loci having differential regulatory impacts. STUDY DESIGN Genome-Wide single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) data of European descent from SCZ (N cases = 53 386, N controls = 77 258) and ASD (N cases = 18 381, N controls = 27 969) were analyzed. We used genetic correlation, bivariate causal mixture model, conditional false discovery rate method, colocalization, Transcriptome-Wide Association Study (TWAS), and Phenome-Wide Association Study (PheWAS) to investigate the genetic overlap and gene expression pattern. STUDY RESULTS We found a positive genetic correlation between SCZ and ASD (rg = .26, SE = 0.01, P = 7.87e-14), with 11 genomic loci jointly influencing both conditions (conjFDR <0.05). Functional analysis highlights a significant enrichment of shared genes during early to mid-fetal developmental stages. A notable genetic region on chromosome 17q21.31 (lead SNP rs2696609) showed strong evidence of colocalization (PP.H4.abf = 0.85). This SNP rs2696609 is linked to many imaging-derived brain phenotypes. TWAS indicated opposing gene expression patterns (primarily pseudogenes and long noncoding RNAs [lncRNAs]) for ASD and SCZ in the 17q21.31 region and some genes (LRRC37A4P, LINC02210, and DND1P1) exhibit considerable variation in the cerebellum across the lifespan. CONCLUSIONS Our findings support a shared genetic basis for SCZ and ASD. A common genetic variant, rs2696609, located in the Chr17q21.31 locus, may exert differential risk regulation on SCZ and ASD by altering brain structure. Future studies should focus on the role of pseudogenes, lncRNAs, and cerebellum in synaptic pruning and neurodevelopmental disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yu Chen
- Department of Psychiatry, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, Henan, China
- Henan Key Lab of Biological Psychiatry, International Joint Research Laboratory for Psychiatry and Neuroscience of Henan, Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, Henan, China
- Henan Collaborative Innovation Center of Prevention and Treatment of Mental Disorder, Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, Henan, China
- Institute of Mental Health, Peking University Sixth Hospital, Beijing, China
- NHC Key Laboratory of Mental Health (Peking University), National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders (Peking University Sixth Hospital), Beijing, China
| | - Wenqiang Li
- Department of Psychiatry, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, Henan, China
- Henan Key Lab of Biological Psychiatry, International Joint Research Laboratory for Psychiatry and Neuroscience of Henan, Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, Henan, China
- Henan Collaborative Innovation Center of Prevention and Treatment of Mental Disorder, Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, Henan, China
| | - Luxian Lv
- Department of Psychiatry, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, Henan, China
- Henan Key Lab of Biological Psychiatry, International Joint Research Laboratory for Psychiatry and Neuroscience of Henan, Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, Henan, China
- Henan Collaborative Innovation Center of Prevention and Treatment of Mental Disorder, Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, Henan, China
- Henan Province People's Hospital, Zhengzhou, Henan, China
| | - Weihua Yue
- Institute of Mental Health, Peking University Sixth Hospital, Beijing, China
- NHC Key Laboratory of Mental Health (Peking University), National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders (Peking University Sixth Hospital), Beijing, China
- PKU-IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, Peking University, Beijing, China
- Research Unit of Diagnosis and Treatment of Mood Cognitive Disorder (2018RU006), Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing, China
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Wang J, Luo GY, Tian T, Zhao YQ, Meng SY, Wu JH, Han WX, Deng B, Ni J. Shared genetic basis and causality between schizophrenia and inflammatory bowel disease: evidence from a comprehensive genetic analysis. Psychol Med 2024:1-11. [PMID: 38563283 DOI: 10.1017/s0033291724000771] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/04/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The comorbidity between schizophrenia (SCZ) and inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) observed in epidemiological studies is partially attributed to genetic overlap, but the magnitude of shared genetic components and the causality relationship between them remains unclear. METHODS By leveraging large-scale genome-wide association study (GWAS) summary statistics for SCZ, IBD, ulcerative colitis (UC), and Crohn's disease (CD), we conducted a comprehensive genetic pleiotropic analysis to uncover shared loci, genes, or biological processes between SCZ and each of IBD, UC, and CD, independently. Univariable and multivariable Mendelian randomization (MR) analyses were applied to assess the causality across these two disorders. RESULTS SCZ genetically correlated with IBD (rg = 0.14, p = 3.65 × 10−9), UC (rg = 0.15, p = 4.88 × 10−8), and CD (rg = 0.12, p = 2.27 × 10−6), all surpassed the Bonferroni correction. Cross-trait meta-analysis identified 64, 52, and 66 significantly independent loci associated with SCZ and IBD, UC, and CD, respectively. Follow-up gene-based analysis found 11 novel pleiotropic genes (KAT5, RABEP1, ELP5, CSNK1G1, etc) in all joint phenotypes. Co-expression and pathway enrichment analysis illustrated those novel genes were mainly involved in core immune-related signal transduction and cerebral disorder-related pathways. In univariable MR, genetic predisposition to SCZ was associated with an increased risk of IBD (OR 1.11, 95% CI 1.07–1.15, p = 1.85 × 10−6). Multivariable MR indicated a causal effect of genetic liability to SCZ on IBD risk independent of Actinobacteria (OR 1.11, 95% CI 1.06–1.16, p = 1.34 × 10−6) or BMI (OR 1.11, 95% CI 1.04–1.18, p = 1.84 × 10−3). CONCLUSIONS We confirmed a shared genetic basis, pleiotropic loci/genes, and causal relationship between SCZ and IBD, providing novel insights into the biological mechanism and therapeutic targets underlying these two disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jing Wang
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
| | - Guang-Yu Luo
- Department of Gastroenterology, Northern Jiangsu People's Hospital Affiliated to Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, China
| | - Tian Tian
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
| | - Yu-Qiang Zhao
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
| | - Shi-Yin Meng
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
| | - Jun-Hua Wu
- Teaching Center for Preventive Medicine, School of Public Health, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
| | - Wen-Xiu Han
- Department of Gastrointestinal Surgery, Department of General Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
| | - Bin Deng
- Department of Gastroenterology, Northern Jiangsu People's Hospital Affiliated to Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, China
| | - Jing Ni
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Anhui Medical University, Hefei, China
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Kiltschewskij DJ, Reay WR, Geaghan MP, Atkins JR, Xavier A, Zhang X, Watkeys OJ, Carr VJ, Scott RJ, Green MJ, Cairns MJ. Alteration of DNA Methylation and Epigenetic Scores Associated With Features of Schizophrenia and Common Variant Genetic Risk. Biol Psychiatry 2024; 95:647-661. [PMID: 37480976 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2023.07.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/13/2022] [Revised: 07/07/2023] [Accepted: 07/10/2023] [Indexed: 07/24/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Unpacking molecular perturbations associated with features of schizophrenia is a critical step toward understanding phenotypic heterogeneity in this disorder. Recent epigenome-wide association studies have uncovered pervasive dysregulation of DNA methylation in schizophrenia; however, clinical features of the disorder that account for a large proportion of phenotypic variability are relatively underexplored. METHODS We comprehensively analyzed patterns of DNA methylation in a cohort of 381 individuals with schizophrenia from the deeply phenotyped Australian Schizophrenia Research Bank. Epigenetic changes were investigated in association with cognitive status, age of onset, treatment resistance, Global Assessment of Functioning scores, and common variant polygenic risk scores for schizophrenia. We subsequently explored alterations within genes previously associated with psychiatric illness, phenome-wide epigenetic covariance, and epigenetic scores. RESULTS Epigenome-wide association studies of the 5 primary traits identified 662 suggestively significant (p < 6.72 × 10-5) differentially methylated probes, with a further 432 revealed after controlling for schizophrenia polygenic risk on the remaining 4 traits. Interestingly, we uncovered many probes within genes associated with a variety of psychiatric conditions as well as significant epigenetic covariance with phenotypes and exposures including acute myocardial infarction, C-reactive protein, and lung cancer. Epigenetic scores for treatment-resistant schizophrenia strikingly exhibited association with clozapine administration, while epigenetic proxies of plasma protein expression, such as CCL17, MMP10, and PRG2, were associated with several features of schizophrenia. CONCLUSIONS Our findings collectively provide novel evidence suggesting that several features of schizophrenia are associated with alteration of DNA methylation, which may contribute to interindividual phenotypic variation in affected individuals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dylan J Kiltschewskij
- School of Biomedical Sciences and Pharmacy, University of Newcastle, Callaghan, New South Wales, Australia; Precision Medicine Program, Hunter Medical Research Institute, New Lambton, New South Wales, Australia
| | - William R Reay
- School of Biomedical Sciences and Pharmacy, University of Newcastle, Callaghan, New South Wales, Australia; Precision Medicine Program, Hunter Medical Research Institute, New Lambton, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Michael P Geaghan
- Garvan Institute of Medical Research, Darlinghurst, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Joshua R Atkins
- School of Biomedical Sciences and Pharmacy, University of Newcastle, Callaghan, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Alexandre Xavier
- School of Biomedical Sciences and Pharmacy, University of Newcastle, Callaghan, New South Wales, Australia; Centre for Information Based Medicine, Hunter Medical Research Institute, New Lambton, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Xiajie Zhang
- School of Biomedical Sciences and Pharmacy, University of Newcastle, Callaghan, New South Wales, Australia; Centre for Information Based Medicine, Hunter Medical Research Institute, New Lambton, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Oliver J Watkeys
- School of Psychiatry, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Vaughan J Carr
- School of Psychiatry, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia; Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria, Australia
| | - Rodney J Scott
- School of Biomedical Sciences and Pharmacy, University of Newcastle, Callaghan, New South Wales, Australia; Centre for Information Based Medicine, Hunter Medical Research Institute, New Lambton, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Melissa J Green
- School of Biomedical Sciences and Pharmacy, University of Newcastle, Callaghan, New South Wales, Australia; School of Psychiatry, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Murray J Cairns
- School of Biomedical Sciences and Pharmacy, University of Newcastle, Callaghan, New South Wales, Australia; Precision Medicine Program, Hunter Medical Research Institute, New Lambton, New South Wales, Australia.
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Warren N, O'Gorman C, Horgan I, Weeratunga M, Halstead S, Moussiopoulou J, Campana M, Yakimov V, Wagner E, Siskind D. Inflammatory cerebrospinal fluid markers in schizophrenia spectrum disorders: A systematic review and meta-analysis of 69 studies with 5710 participants. Schizophr Res 2024; 266:24-31. [PMID: 38364730 DOI: 10.1016/j.schres.2024.02.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/20/2023] [Revised: 12/03/2023] [Accepted: 02/10/2024] [Indexed: 02/18/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND There is increasing evidence of immune dysregulation and neuroinflammation occurring in schizophrenia. The aim of this study is to combine studies on routine CSF parameters, as well as cytokines and inflammatory proteins, in individuals with schizophrenia spectrum disorders. METHODS CSF parameters were summated and inverse variance meta-analyses using a random effects model were performed comparing mean difference or odds ratios. Between study heterogeneity was assessed using the I2 statistic. Quality assessment and sensitivity analyses were performed. RESULTS There were 69 studies of 5710 participants, including 3180 individuals with schizophrenia spectrum disorders. Averaged CSF parameters were within normal limits, however, between 3.1 % and 23.5 % of individual cases with schizophrenia spectrum disorders had an abnormal CSF result: Protein (abnormal in 23.5 % cases), albumin (in 18.5 %), presence of oligoclonal bands (in 9.3 %), white blood cell count (in 3.6 %), and IgG levels (3.1 %). Meta-analysis of 55 studies with non-psychiatric controls demonstrated a significant increase in CSF total protein (MD: 3.50, CI: 0.12-6.87), albumin ratio (MD: 0.55, CI: 0.02-0.09), white cell count (MD: 0.25, CI: 0.05-0.46), IL-6 (SMD: 0.53, CI: 0.29 to 0.77) and IL-8 (SMD: 0.56, CI: 0.11 to 1.01). Sensitivity analysis did not alter findings. CONCLUSION Abnormal CSF parameters, cytokines and inflammatory proteins were found in a significant proportion of individuals with schizophrenia spectrum disorders. This may indicate alterations to blood brain barrier function and permeability, CSF flow dynamics or neuroinflammation. Further research is needed to explore these potential mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicola Warren
- The University of Queensland, Faculty of Medicine, Brisbane, Australia; Metro South Addiction and Mental Health Service, Metro South Health, Brisbane, Australia.
| | - Cullen O'Gorman
- The University of Queensland, Faculty of Medicine, Brisbane, Australia; Department of Neurology, Metro South Health, Brisbane, Australia
| | | | | | - Sean Halstead
- The University of Queensland, Faculty of Medicine, Brisbane, Australia
| | - Joanna Moussiopoulou
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Mattia Campana
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Vladislav Yakimov
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany; International Max Planck Research School for Translational Psychiatry (IMPRS-TP), Munich, Germany
| | - Elias Wagner
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, University Hospital, LMU Munich, Munich, Germany
| | - Dan Siskind
- The University of Queensland, Faculty of Medicine, Brisbane, Australia; Metro South Addiction and Mental Health Service, Metro South Health, Brisbane, Australia
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7
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Ling Z, Cheng Y, Liu X, Yan X, Wu L, Shao L, Gao J, Lei W, Song Q, Zhao L, Jin G. Altered oral microbiota and immune dysfunction in Chinese elderly patients with schizophrenia: a cross-sectional study. Transl Psychiatry 2023; 13:383. [PMID: 38071192 PMCID: PMC10710460 DOI: 10.1038/s41398-023-02682-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2023] [Revised: 11/24/2023] [Accepted: 11/27/2023] [Indexed: 12/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Schizophrenia (SZ) is a complex psychiatric neurodevelopmental disorder with uncertain etiology and pathogenesis. Increasing evidence has recognized the key role of the gut microbiota in SZ. However, few studies have investigated the potential link between oral microbiota and SZ. We studied the tongue coating microbiota and inflammatory profiles of 118 elderly SZ patients and 97 age-matched healthy controls using Illumina MiSeq sequencing and multiplex immunoassays, respectively. Reduced α-diversity, along with a significant difference in β-diversity, were observed in patients with SZ. We have identified SZ-associated oral dysbiosis, characterized by increased Streptococcus and Fusobacterium, as well as decreased Prevotella and Veillonella. These differential genera could potentially serve as biomarkers for SZ, either alone or in combination. Additionally, an elevated Streptococcus/Prevotella ratio could indicate oral dysbiosis. These differential genera formed two distinct clusters: Streptococcus-dominated and Prevotella-dominated, which exhibited different correlations with the altered immunological profiles. Furthermore, we also observed disruptions in the inferred microbiota functions in SZ-associated microbiota, particularly in lipid and amino acid metabolism. Our study provides novel insights into the characteristics of tongue coating microbiota and its associations with immunological disturbances in elderly SZ patients, which offer new targets for the diagnosis and treatment of SZ in the elderly.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zongxin Ling
- Collaborative Innovation Center for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, State Key Laboratory for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, National Clinical Research Center for Infectious Diseases, the First Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, 310003, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.
- Jinan Microecological Biomedicine Shandong Laboratory, 250000, Jinan, Shandong, China.
| | - Yiwen Cheng
- Collaborative Innovation Center for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, State Key Laboratory for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, National Clinical Research Center for Infectious Diseases, the First Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, 310003, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
- Jinan Microecological Biomedicine Shandong Laboratory, 250000, Jinan, Shandong, China
| | - Xia Liu
- Department of Intensive Care Unit, the First Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, 310003, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Xiumei Yan
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Lishui Second People's Hospital, 323000, Lishui, Zhejiang, China
| | - Lingbin Wu
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Lishui Second People's Hospital, 323000, Lishui, Zhejiang, China
| | - Li Shao
- School of Clinical Medicine, Institute of Hepatology and Metabolic Diseases, Hangzhou Normal University, The Affiliated Hospital of Hangzhou Normal University, 310015, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Jie Gao
- Collaborative Innovation Center for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, State Key Laboratory for Diagnosis and Treatment of Infectious Diseases, National Clinical Research Center for Infectious Diseases, the First Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, 310003, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
| | - Wenhui Lei
- Jinan Microecological Biomedicine Shandong Laboratory, 250000, Jinan, Shandong, China
- School of Basic Medicine, Shandong First Medical University, 250000, Jinan, Shandong, China
| | - Qinghai Song
- Department of Psychiatry, Lishui Second People's Hospital, 323000, Lishui, Zhejiang, China
| | - Longyou Zhao
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Lishui Second People's Hospital, 323000, Lishui, Zhejiang, China.
| | - Guolin Jin
- Department of Psychiatry, Lishui Second People's Hospital, 323000, Lishui, Zhejiang, China.
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8
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Zheng Y, Zhang Q, Zhou X, Yao L, Zhu Q, Fu Z. Altered levels of cytokine, T- and B-lymphocytes, and PD-1 expression rates in drug-naïve schizophrenia patients with acute phase. Sci Rep 2023; 13:21711. [PMID: 38066312 PMCID: PMC10709554 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-49206-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2023] [Accepted: 12/05/2023] [Indexed: 12/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Many studies have investigated the changes of immune cells and proinflammatory cytokines in patients with acute schizophrenia, but few studies have investigated the functional phenotypes of immune cells and the expression rate of programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1)/ programmed cell death-Ligand 1 (PD-L1). The aim of this study was to investigate the extent of immune cells activation, PD-1/PD-L1 expressions, and altered cytokine levels in drug-naïve schizophrenia patients with acute-phase. 23 drug-naïve schizophrenia patients in acute-phase and 23 healthy individuals were enrolled in this study as experimental and control groups, separately. Socio-demographic information including gender, age, duration of illness, and smoking status was collected for each subject. Beckman DXFLEX triple laser thirteen-color flow cytometer and self-contained software CytoFLEX flow cytometric analysis software were used to detect the expressions of PD-1/PD-L1 on CD4+/CD8+ T lymphocytes, B lymphocytes, monocytes and NK cells. BD Bioscience was used to examine the levels of cytokines including interferon (IFN)-γ, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α, Interleukin (IL)-2, IL-4, IL-6, and IL-10. Drug-naïve schizophrenia patients in acute-phase had higher levels of peripheral blood CD4+ T lymphocytes and B lymphocytes, higher PD-1 expression in B lymphocytes, and lower levels of CD8+ T lymphocytes. In addition, IL-6 levels of peripheral blood were higher in schizophrenia patients (all P < 0.05). Significant immune stress was present in schizophrenia patients with acute-phase.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yali Zheng
- Affiliated Xiaoshan Hospital, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Qi Zhang
- Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Xianqin Zhou
- Affiliated Xiaoshan Hospital, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou, China
| | - Linjuan Yao
- Hangzhou Di'an Medical Laboratory Center Co., Ltd, Hangzhou, China
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9
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Guan X, Leng W, Hu Q, Xiu M, Zhang X. Association between cognitive function and IL-18 levels in schizophrenia: Dependent on IL18 - 607 A/C polymorphism. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2023; 158:106386. [PMID: 37741261 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2023.106386] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2023] [Revised: 08/26/2023] [Accepted: 09/10/2023] [Indexed: 09/25/2023]
Abstract
Accumulating evidence suggests that immune system dysregulation is associated with debilitating neurodevelopment in schizophrenia (SZ). Cognitive impairment is a persistent feature that occurs during the onset of SZ and persists throughout the course of the disease. Early studies have found that elevated interleukin (IL)- 18 interacts with IL18 polymorphism and is correlated with psychotic symptoms in SZ. This study aimed to investigate whether elevated IL-18 levels interacted with the -607 A/C polymorphism to determine cognitive decline in patients with chronic SZ. We recruited 693 inpatients and 422 healthy controls to measure IL-18 levels and genotype the - 607 A/C polymorphism. Further, cognitive function was measured by the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status (RBANS). We found that IL-18 serum levels were higher in patients than those in healthy controls, and were not associated with IL18 - 607 A/C in combined subjects or either patients or healthy controls, respectively. Moreover, - 607 A/C was correlated with the visuospatial/constructional index only in the patients. In addition, our research found that IL-18 levels were positively correlated to immediate memory only in patients with the C/C genotype, but not in patients with C/A or A/A genotype. This study suggests that the relationship of IL-18 with cognitive function depends on the IL18 - 607 A/C polymorphism of SZ patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoni Guan
- Peking University, Huilongguan Clinical Medical School, Beijing Huilongguan Hospital, Beijing, China
| | | | - Qiongyue Hu
- Qingdao Mental Health Center, Qingdao, China
| | - Meihong Xiu
- Peking University, Huilongguan Clinical Medical School, Beijing Huilongguan Hospital, Beijing, China
| | - Xiangyang Zhang
- CAS Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
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10
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Messina A, Crescimanno C, Cuccì G, Caraci F, Signorelli MS. Cell adhesion molecules in the pathogenesis of the schizophrenia. Folia Med (Plovdiv) 2023; 65:707-712. [PMID: 38351751 DOI: 10.3897/folmed.65.e101356] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/02/2023] [Accepted: 03/16/2023] [Indexed: 02/16/2024] Open
Abstract
The causes of schizophrenia remain obscure and complex to identify. Alterations in dopaminergic and serotonergic neurotransmission are, to date, the primary pharmacological targets in treatment. Underlying abnormalities in neural networks have been identified as cell adhesion molecules (CAMs) involved in synaptic remodeling and interplay between neurons-neurons and neurons-glial cells. Among the CAMs, several families have been identified, such as integrins, selectins, cadherins, immunoglobulins, nectins, and the neuroligin-neurexin complex. In this paper, cell adhesion molecules involved in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia will be described.
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11
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Li N, Ma RH, Zhang EF, Ge F, Fang DY, Zhang J, Zhang YN, Gao Y, Hou LC, Jin HX. Interferon-induced transmembrane protein 3 in the hippocampus: a potential novel target for the therapeutic effects of recombinant human brain natriuretic peptide on sepsis-associated encephalopathy. Front Mol Neurosci 2023; 16:1182005. [PMID: 37602193 PMCID: PMC10436203 DOI: 10.3389/fnmol.2023.1182005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2023] [Accepted: 07/03/2023] [Indexed: 08/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Objective This study aims to explore whether interferon-induced transmembrane protein 3 (IFITM3) is involved in recombinant human brain natriuretic peptide (rhBNP)-mediated effects on sepsis-induced cognitive dysfunction in mice. Methods The cellular localization and expression level of IFITM3 in the hippocampus were detected. The IFITM3 overexpression was achieved using an intracranial stereotactic system to inject an adeno-associated virus into the hippocampal CA1 region of mice. Field experiments, an elevated plus maze, and conditioned fear memory tests assessed the cognitive impairment in rhBNP-treated septic mice. Finally, in the hippocampus of septic mice, terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase biotin-dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL) staining and Immunoblot were used to detect changes in the protein expression of cleaved Caspase-8 and cleaved Caspase-3 in apoptosis-related pathways, and toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) and nuclear factor κB (NF-κB) p65 in inflammatory pathways. Results Fourteen days after cecal ligation and puncture (CLP) surgery, IFITM3 localized in the plasma membrane and cytoplasm of the astrocytes in the hippocampus of septic mice, partially attached to the perivascular and neuronal surfaces, but not expressed in the microglia. The expression of IFITM3 was increased in the astrocytes and neurons in the hippocampus of septic mice, which was selectively inhibited by the administration of rhBNP. Overexpression of IFITM3 resulted in elevated anxiety levels and long-term learning and memory dysfunction, completely abolished the therapeutic effect of rhBNP on cognitive impairment in septic mice, and induced an increase in the number of neuronal apoptosis in the hippocampal CA1 region. The expression levels of cleaved Caspase-3 and cleaved Caspase-8 proteins were significantly increased in the hippocampus, but the expression levels of TLR4 and NF-κB p65 were not increased. Conclusion The activation of IFITM3 may be a potential new target for treating sepsis-associated encephalopathy (SAE), and it may be one of the key anti-apoptotic mechanisms in rhBNP exerting its therapeutic effect, providing new insight into the clinical treatment of SAE patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nan Li
- Department of Emergency Medicine, General Hospital of Northern Theater Command, Shenyang, Liaoning, China
- Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine, Xijing Hospital, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, China
| | - Rui-Hang Ma
- Department of Emergency Medicine, General Hospital of Northern Theater Command, Shenyang, Liaoning, China
| | - Er-Fei Zhang
- Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine, Xijing Hospital, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, China
- Department of Anesthesiology, The Affiliated Hospital of Yan’an University, Yan’an, Shaanxi, China
| | - Feng Ge
- Department of Emergency Medicine, General Hospital of Northern Theater Command, Shenyang, Liaoning, China
| | - De-Yu Fang
- Department of Chemistry, Liaoning University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shenyang, Liaoning, China
| | - Jing Zhang
- Department of Intensive Care Unit, Yue Bei People’s Hospital, The Affiliated Hospital of Shantou University, Shaoguan, Guangdong, China
| | - Yan-Ning Zhang
- Department of Nephrology, General Hospital of Northern Theater Command, Shenyang, China
| | - Yan Gao
- Department of Emergency Medicine, General Hospital of Northern Theater Command, Shenyang, Liaoning, China
| | - Li-Chao Hou
- Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine, Xijing Hospital, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, Shaanxi, China
- Department of Anesthesiology, Xiang’an Hospital of Xiamen University, Xiamen, Fujian, China
| | - Hong-Xu Jin
- Department of Emergency Medicine, General Hospital of Northern Theater Command, Shenyang, Liaoning, China
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Valli I, McGuire P. Genetic and obstetric risk in psychosis: Towards a hypothesis-based probe of different noxae. Eur Neuropsychopharmacol 2023; 72:6-8. [PMID: 36958231 DOI: 10.1016/j.euroneuro.2023.03.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2023] [Revised: 02/28/2023] [Accepted: 03/02/2023] [Indexed: 03/25/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Isabel Valli
- Institut d'Investigacions Biomèdiques August Pi i Sunyer (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain; Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience (IoPPN), King's College London, UK.
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13
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Zhan N, Sham PC, So HC, Lui SSY. The genetic basis of onset age in schizophrenia: evidence and models. Front Genet 2023; 14:1163361. [PMID: 37441552 PMCID: PMC10333597 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2023.1163361] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2023] [Accepted: 06/16/2023] [Indexed: 07/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Schizophrenia is a heritable neurocognitive disorder affecting about 1% of the population, and usually has an onset age at around 21-25 in males and 25-30 in females. Recent advances in genetics have helped to identify many common and rare variants for the liability to schizophrenia. Earlier evidence appeared to suggest that younger onset age is associated with higher genetic liability to schizophrenia. Clinical longitudinal research also found that early and very-early onset schizophrenia are associated with poor clinical, neurocognitive, and functional profiles. A recent study reported a heritability of 0.33 for schizophrenia onset age, but the genetic basis of this trait in schizophrenia remains elusive. In the pre-Genome-Wide Association Study (GWAS) era, genetic loci found to be associated with onset age were seldom replicated. In the post-Genome-Wide Association Study era, new conceptual frameworks are needed to clarify the role of onset age in genetic research in schizophrenia, and to identify its genetic basis. In this review, we first discussed the potential of onset age as a characterizing/subtyping feature for psychosis, and as an important phenotypic dimension of schizophrenia. Second, we reviewed the methods, samples, findings and limitations of previous genetic research on onset age in schizophrenia. Third, we discussed a potential conceptual framework for studying the genetic basis of onset age, as well as the concepts of susceptibility, modifier, and "mixed" genes. Fourth, we discussed the limitations of this review. Lastly, we discussed the potential clinical implications for genetic research of onset age of schizophrenia, and how future research can unveil the potential mechanisms for this trait.
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Affiliation(s)
- Na Zhan
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Pak C. Sham
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
- Centre of PanorOmic Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
- State Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Hon-Cheong So
- School of Biomedical Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong SAR, China
- KIZ-CUHK Joint Laboratory of Bioresources and Molecular Research of Common Diseases, Kunming Institute of Zoology and the Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong SAR, China
- Department of Psychiatry, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong SAR, China
- CUHK Shenzhen Research Institute, Shenzhen, China
- Margaret K. L. Cheung Research Centre for Management of Parkinsonism, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong SAR, China
- Brain and Mind Institute, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong SAR, China
- Hong Kong Branch of the Chinese Academy of Sciences Center for Excellence in Animal Evolution and Genetics, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, Hong Kong SAR, China
| | - Simon S. Y. Lui
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China
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14
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Kotsiri I, Resta P, Spyrantis A, Panotopoulos C, Chaniotis D, Beloukas A, Magiorkinis E. Viral Infections and Schizophrenia: A Comprehensive Review. Viruses 2023; 15:1345. [PMID: 37376644 DOI: 10.3390/v15061345] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2023] [Revised: 06/02/2023] [Accepted: 06/08/2023] [Indexed: 06/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Schizophrenia is a complex mental disorder with multiple genetic and environmental factors contributing to its pathogenesis. Viral infections have been suggested to be one of the environmental factors associated with the development of this disorder. We comprehensively review all relevant published literature focusing on the relationship between schizophrenia and various viral infections, such as influenza virus, herpes virus 1 and 2 (HSV-1 and HSV-2), cytomegalovirus (CMV), Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), retrovirus, coronavirus, and Borna virus. These viruses may interfere with the normal maturation of the brain directly or through immune-induced mediators, such as cytokines, leading to the onset of schizophrenia. Changes in the expression of critical genes and elevated levels of inflammatory cytokines have been linked to virally-induced infections and relevant immune activities in schizophrenia. Future research is necessary to understand this relationship better and provide insight into the molecular mechanisms underlying the pathophysiology of schizophrenia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ioanna Kotsiri
- Department of Internal Medicine, Asklipeion General Hospital, Voulas, 16673 Athens, Greece
| | - Panagiota Resta
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of West Attica, 12243 Athens, Greece
- National AIDS Reference Centre of Southern Greece, Department of Public Health Policy, University of West Attica, 11521 Athens, Greece
| | - Alexandros Spyrantis
- Department of Internal Medicine, Asklipeion General Hospital, Voulas, 16673 Athens, Greece
| | | | - Dimitrios Chaniotis
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of West Attica, 12243 Athens, Greece
| | - Apostolos Beloukas
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of West Attica, 12243 Athens, Greece
- National AIDS Reference Centre of Southern Greece, Department of Public Health Policy, University of West Attica, 11521 Athens, Greece
| | - Emmanouil Magiorkinis
- Department of Laboratory Medicine, Sotiria General Hospital for Chest Diseases, 11527 Athens, Greece
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15
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Yang Z, Li D, He Y, Chen X, Li Z. Unrevealing the shared genetic mechanisms underlying C-reactive protein and schizophrenia. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry 2023; 126:110785. [PMID: 37150315 DOI: 10.1016/j.pnpbp.2023.110785] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2022] [Revised: 04/18/2023] [Accepted: 05/04/2023] [Indexed: 05/09/2023]
Abstract
Longitudinal observational studies and Mendelian randomization research have obtained contradictory conclusions regarding the association between C-reactive protein (CRP) level and schizophrenia risk. However, the shared genetic mechanisms underlying CRP and schizophrenia remain poorly understood. Here, we examined the global and local genetic correlations using summary statistics from large-scale genome-wide association studies (GWAS) on CRP level and schizophrenia. Furthermore, we identified their shared genetic variants by applying the conditional false discovery rate approach and performed functional analyses of shared variants to explore the shared genetic mechanisms underlying CRP level and schizophrenia. We found a significant negative genetic correlation at the whole genome level and five significant local genetic correlations between CRP level and schizophrenia. Eight-three shared genetic loci were identified, from which single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) presents mixed effects on the increased CRP level and schizophrenia risk. Additionally, we identified 64 and 73 candidate genes that were mapped from SNPs with"concordant effect"(ceSNPs) and"discordant effect"(deSNPs) on the CRP level and schizophrenia risk respectively. Functional analyses revealed that genes mapped from ceSNPs and deSNPs exhibited similar patterns of human brain developmental expression trajectories and biological processes, but differed in expression levels and cell-type-specific enrichment in brain tissues. Our findings demonstrated mixed effects of shared genetic architecture between CRP level and schizophrenia, proving a deeper insight into the shared genetic aetiology underlying the CRP level and schizophrenia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zihao Yang
- Department of Psychiatry, and National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, PR China
| | - David Li
- Department of Psychiatry, and National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, PR China
| | - Ying He
- Department of Psychiatry, and National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, PR China; China National Technology Institute on Mental Disorders & Hunan Key Laboratory of Psychiatry and Mental Health, Mental Health Institute of the Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, PR China
| | - Xiaogang Chen
- Department of Psychiatry, and National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, PR China; China National Technology Institute on Mental Disorders & Hunan Key Laboratory of Psychiatry and Mental Health, Mental Health Institute of the Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, PR China
| | - Zongchang Li
- Department of Psychiatry, and National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, PR China; China National Technology Institute on Mental Disorders & Hunan Key Laboratory of Psychiatry and Mental Health, Mental Health Institute of the Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, PR China.
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16
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Dang X, Song M, Lv L, Yang Y, Luo XJ. Proteome-wide Mendelian randomization reveals the causal effects of immune-related plasma proteins on psychiatric disorders. Hum Genet 2023; 142:809-818. [PMID: 37085628 DOI: 10.1007/s00439-023-02562-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/11/2023] [Accepted: 04/17/2023] [Indexed: 04/23/2023]
Abstract
Immune dysregulation has been consistently reported in psychiatric disorders, however, the causes and mechanisms underlying immune dysregulation in psychiatric disorders remain largely unclear. Here we conduct a Mendelian randomization study by integrating plasma proteome and GWASs of schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and depression. The primate-specific immune-related protein BTN3A3 showed the most significant associations with all three psychiatric disorders. In addition, other immune-related proteins, including AIF1, FOXO3, IRF3, CFHR4, IGLON5, FKBP2, and PI3, also showed significant associations with psychiatric disorders. Our study showed that a proportion of psychiatric risk variants may contribute to disease risk by regulating immune-related plasma proteins, providing direct evidence that connect the genetic risk of psychiatric disorders to immune system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xinglun Dang
- Key Laboratory of Animal Models and Human Disease Mechanisms of the Chinese Academy of Sciences & Yunnan Province, Kunming Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Kunming, 650204, Yunnan, China
| | - Meng Song
- Henan Mental Hospital, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, 453002, Henan, China
- Henan Key Lab of Biological Psychiatry of Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, 453002, Henan, China
| | - Luxian Lv
- Henan Mental Hospital, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, 453002, Henan, China.
- Henan Key Lab of Biological Psychiatry of Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, 453002, Henan, China.
| | - Yongfeng Yang
- Henan Mental Hospital, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, 453002, Henan, China.
- Henan Key Lab of Biological Psychiatry of Xinxiang Medical University, Xinxiang, 453002, Henan, China.
- Henan Collaborative Innovation Center of Prevention and Treatment of Mental Disorder, Xinxiang, 453002, Henan, China.
| | - Xiong-Jian Luo
- Zhongda Hospital, School of Medicine, Advanced Institute for Life and Health, Southeast University, Nanjing, 210096, Jiangsu, China.
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Zhang Z, Guo Z, Tu Z, Yang H, Li C, Hu M, Zhang Y, Jin P, Hou S. Cortex-specific transcriptome profiling reveals upregulation of interferon-regulated genes after deeper cerebral hypoperfusion in mice. Front Physiol 2023; 14:1056354. [PMID: 36994418 PMCID: PMC10040763 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2023.1056354] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2022] [Accepted: 02/24/2023] [Indexed: 03/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Background: Chronic cerebral hypoperfusion (CCH) is commonly accompanied by brain injury and glial activation. In addition to white matter lesions, the intensity of CCH greatly affects the degree of gray matter damage. However, little is understood about the underlying molecular mechanisms related to cortical lesions and glial activation following hypoperfusion. Efforts to investigate the relationship between neuropathological alternations and gene expression changes support a role for identifying novel molecular pathways by transcriptomic mechanisms.Methods: Chronic cerebral ischemic injury model was induced by the bilateral carotid artery stenosis (BCAS) using 0.16/0.18 mm microcoils. Cerebral blood flow (CBF) was evaluated using laser speckle contrast imaging (LSCI) system. Spatial learning and memory were assessed by Morris water maze test. Histological changes were evaluated by Hematoxylin staining. Microglial activation and neuronal loss were further examined by immunofluorescence staining. Cortex-specific gene expression profiling analysis was performed in sham and BCAS mice, and then validated by quantitative RT-PCR and immunohistochemistry (IHC).Results: In our study, compared with the sham group, the right hemisphere CBF of BCAS mice decreased to 69% and the cognitive function became impaired at 4 weeks postoperation. Besides, the BCAS mice displayed profound gray matter damage, including atrophy and thinning of the cortex, accompanied by neuronal loss and increased activated microglia. Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA) revealed that hypoperfusion-induced upregulated genes were significantly enriched in the pathways of interferon (IFN)-regulated signaling along with neuroinflammation signaling. Ingenuity pathway analysis (IPA) predicted the importance of type I IFN signaling in regulating the CCH gene network. The obtained RNA-seq data were validated by qRT-PCR in cerebral cortex, showing consistency with the RNA-seq results. Also, IHC staining revealed elevated expression of IFN-inducible protein in cerebral cortex following BCAS-hypoperfusion.Conclusion: Overall, the activation of IFN-mediated signaling enhanced our understanding of the neuroimmune responses induced by CCH. The upregulation of IFN-regulated genes (IRGs) might exert a critical impact on the progression of cerebral hypoperfusion. Our improved understanding of cortex-specific transcriptional profiles will be helpful to explore potential targets for CCH.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zengyu Zhang
- Department of Neurology, Shanghai Pudong Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Zimin Guo
- Department of Neurology, Shanghai Pudong Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Zhilan Tu
- Department of Neurology, Shanghai Pudong Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Hualan Yang
- Department of Neurology, Shanghai Pudong Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Chao Li
- School of Pharmacy, Hubei University of Science and Technology, Hubei, China
| | - Mengting Hu
- Department of Neurology, Shanghai Pudong Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Yuan Zhang
- Department of Vascular Surgery, Shanghai Pudong Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Pengpeng Jin
- Department of Chronic Disease Management, Shanghai Pudong Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
- *Correspondence: Shuangxing Hou, ; Pengpeng Jin,
| | - Shuangxing Hou
- Department of Neurology, Shanghai Pudong Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
- *Correspondence: Shuangxing Hou, ; Pengpeng Jin,
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Inflammation and cognition in severe mental illness: patterns of covariation and subgroups. Mol Psychiatry 2023; 28:1284-1292. [PMID: 36577840 PMCID: PMC10005942 DOI: 10.1038/s41380-022-01924-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/26/2022] [Revised: 12/06/2022] [Accepted: 12/13/2022] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
A potential relationship between dysregulation of immune/inflammatory pathways and cognitive impairment has been suggested in severe mental illnesses (SMI), such as schizophrenia (SZ) and bipolar (BD) spectrum disorders. However, multivariate relationships between peripheral inflammatory/immune-related markers and cognitive domains are unclear, and many studies do not account for inter-individual variance in both cognitive functioning and inflammatory/immune status. This study aimed to investigate covariance patterns between inflammatory/immune-related markers and cognitive domains and further elucidate heterogeneity in a large SMI and healthy control (HC) cohort (SZ = 343, BD = 289, HC = 770). We applied canonical correlation analysis (CCA) to identify modes of maximum covariation between a comprehensive selection of cognitive domains and inflammatory/immune markers. We found that poor verbal learning and psychomotor processing speed was associated with higher levels of interleukin-18 system cytokines and beta defensin 2, reflecting enhanced activation of innate immunity, a pattern augmented in SMI compared to HC. Applying hierarchical clustering on covariance patterns identified by the CCA revealed a high cognition-low immune dysregulation subgroup with predominantly HC (24% SZ, 45% BD, 74% HC) and a low cognition-high immune dysregulation subgroup predominantly consisting of SMI patients (76% SZ, 55% BD, 26% HC). These subgroups differed in IQ, years of education, age, CRP, BMI (all groups), level of functioning, symptoms and defined daily dose (DDD) of antipsychotics (SMI cohort). Our findings suggest a link between cognitive impairment and innate immune dysregulation in a subset of individuals with severe mental illness.
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Wang L, Wang B, Wu C, Wang J, Sun M. Autism Spectrum Disorder: Neurodevelopmental Risk Factors, Biological Mechanism, and Precision Therapy. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:ijms24031819. [PMID: 36768153 PMCID: PMC9915249 DOI: 10.3390/ijms24031819] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/29/2022] [Revised: 01/12/2023] [Accepted: 01/13/2023] [Indexed: 01/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a heterogeneous, behaviorally defined neurodevelopmental disorder. Over the past two decades, the prevalence of autism spectrum disorders has progressively increased, however, no clear diagnostic markers and specifically targeted medications for autism have emerged. As a result, neurobehavioral abnormalities, neurobiological alterations in ASD, and the development of novel ASD pharmacological therapy necessitate multidisciplinary collaboration. In this review, we discuss the development of multiple animal models of ASD to contribute to the disease mechanisms of ASD, as well as new studies from multiple disciplines to assess the behavioral pathology of ASD. In addition, we summarize and highlight the mechanistic advances regarding gene transcription, RNA and non-coding RNA translation, abnormal synaptic signaling pathways, epigenetic post-translational modifications, brain-gut axis, immune inflammation and neural loop abnormalities in autism to provide a theoretical basis for the next step of precision therapy. Furthermore, we review existing autism therapy tactics and limits and present challenges and opportunities for translating multidisciplinary knowledge of ASD into clinical practice.
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Dixon TA, Muotri AR. Advancing preclinical models of psychiatric disorders with human brain organoid cultures. Mol Psychiatry 2023; 28:83-95. [PMID: 35948659 PMCID: PMC9812789 DOI: 10.1038/s41380-022-01708-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2022] [Revised: 07/05/2022] [Accepted: 07/07/2022] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
Abstract
Psychiatric disorders are often distinguished from neurological disorders in that the former do not have characteristic lesions or findings from cerebrospinal fluid, electroencephalograms (EEGs), or brain imaging, and furthermore do not have commonly recognized convergent mechanisms. Psychiatric disorders commonly involve clinical diagnosis of phenotypic behavioral disturbances of mood and psychosis, often with a poorly understood contribution of environmental factors. As such, psychiatric disease has been challenging to model preclinically for mechanistic understanding and pharmaceutical development. This review compares commonly used animal paradigms of preclinical testing with evolving techniques of induced pluripotent cell culture with a focus on emerging three-dimensional models. Advances in complexity of 3D cultures, recapitulating electrical activity in utero, and disease modeling of psychosis, mood, and environmentally induced disorders are reviewed. Insights from these rapidly expanding technologies are discussed as they pertain to the utility of human organoid and other models in finding novel research directions, validating pharmaceutical action, and recapitulating human disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas Anthony Dixon
- grid.266100.30000 0001 2107 4242Department of Psychiatry, University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093 USA
| | - Alysson R. Muotri
- grid.266100.30000 0001 2107 4242Department of Pediatrics and Department of Cellular & Molecular Medicine, University of California San Diego, School of Medicine, Center for Academic Research and Training in Anthropogeny (CARTA), Kavli Institute for Brain and Mind, Archealization Center (ArchC), La Jolla, CA 92037 USA
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21
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Webster MJ. Infections, Inflammation, and Psychiatric Illness: Review of Postmortem Evidence. Curr Top Behav Neurosci 2023; 61:35-48. [PMID: 35505055 DOI: 10.1007/7854_2022_362] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
While there is an abundance of epidemiological evidence implicating infectious agents in the etiology of severe mental illnesses, postmortem studies have not yet detected an increased incidence of microbial nucleic acid or proteins in the brains of people with mental illness. Nevertheless, abnormally expressed immune and inflammatory markers have consistently been found in the postmortem brain of patients with schizophrenia and mood disorders. Some of these abnormalities may be the result of an infection in utero or early in life that not only impacted the developing immune system but also the developing neurons of the brain. Some of the immune markers that are consistently found to be upregulated in schizophrenia implicate a possible viral infection and the blood brain barrier in the etiology and neuropathology of the disorder.
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22
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Yu YH, Su HM, Lin SH, Hsiao PC, Lin YT, Liu CM, Hwang TJ, Hsieh MH, Liu CC, Chien YL, Kuo CJ, Hwu HG, Chen WJ. Niacin skin flush and membrane polyunsaturated fatty acids in schizophrenia from the acute state to partial remission: a dynamic relationship. SCHIZOPHRENIA 2022; 8:38. [PMID: 35853900 PMCID: PMC9261101 DOI: 10.1038/s41537-022-00252-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/25/2021] [Accepted: 03/28/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
Abstract
Despite the consistent finding of an attenuated niacin-induced flush response in schizophrenia, its long-term stability and relationship to the membrane polyunsaturated fatty acid (PUFA) levels remain unknown. We conducted niacin skin tests and measured the membrane PUFAs using gas chromatography among 46 schizophrenia inpatients and 37 healthy controls at the baseline and the 2-month follow-up. Attenuated flush responses were persistently observed in schizophrenia patients in both acute and partial remission states, whereas an increased flush response was found in the controls. A persistent decrease in both dihomo-gamma-linolenic acid and docosahexaenoic acid and an increased turnover of arachidonic acid (ARA) via endogenous biosynthesis were found in schizophrenia patients. A composite niacin flush score by combining those with a control-to-case ratio of >1.4 (i.e., scores at 5 min of 0.1 M, 0.01 M, and 0.001 M + 10 min of 0.01 M and 0.001 M + 15 min of 0.001 M) at the baseline was correlated positively with ARA levels among controls but not among schizophrenia patients, whereas the flush score at the 2-month follow-up was correlated positively with ARA levels among patients. The 2-month persistence of attenuated niacin-induced flush response in schizophrenia patients implies that the niacin skin test might tap a long-term vulnerability to schizophrenia beyond acute exacerbation.
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23
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Elkjaer Greenwood Ormerod MB, Ueland T, Frogner Werner MC, Hjell G, Rødevand L, Sæther LS, Lunding SH, Johansen IT, Ueland T, Lagerberg TV, Melle I, Djurovic S, Andreassen OA, Steen NE. Composite immune marker scores associated with severe mental disorders and illness course. Brain Behav Immun Health 2022; 24:100483. [PMID: 35856063 PMCID: PMC9287150 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbih.2022.100483] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2022] [Accepted: 06/28/2022] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Low-grade inflammation has been implicated in the pathophysiology of severe mental disorders (SMDs) and a link between immune activation and clinical characteristics is suggested. However, few studies have investigated how patterns across immune markers are related to diagnosis and illness course. Methods A total of 948 participants with a diagnosis of schizophrenia (SCZ, N = 602) or bipolar (BD, N = 346) spectrum disorder, and 814 healthy controls (HC) were included. Twenty-five immune markers comprising cell adhesion molecules (CAMs), interleukin (IL)-18-system factors, defensins, chemokines and other markers, related to neuroinflammation, blood-brain barrier (BBB) function, inflammasome activation and immune cell orchestration were analyzed. Eight immune principal component (PC) scores were constructed by PC Analysis (PCA) and applied in general linear models with diagnosis and illness course characteristics. Results Three PC scores were significantly associated with a SCZ and/or BD diagnosis (HC reference), with largest, however small, effect sizes of scores based on CAMs, BBB markers and defensins (p < 0.001, partial η2 = 0.02–0.03). Number of psychotic episodes per year in SCZ was associated with a PC score based on IL-18 system markers and the potential neuroprotective cytokine A proliferation-inducing ligand (p = 0.006, partial η2 = 0.071). Conclusion Analyses of composite immune markers scores identified specific patterns suggesting CAMs-mediated BBB dysregulation pathways associated with SMDs and interrelated pro-inflammatory and neuronal integrity processes associated with severity of illness course. This suggests a complex pattern of immune pathways involved in SMDs and SCZ illness course. Composite score of VCAM-1, ICAM-1, NCAD and IL-18BP associated with SCZ and BD. Composite score of MadCAM-1 and BD-1 associated with SCZ and BD. Composite score of S100B, furin, HNP1-3 and BD-1 associated with BD. Composite score of APRIL and IL-18R markers associated with psychotic episode rate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Monica Bettina Elkjaer Greenwood Ormerod
- NORMENT Centre, Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway
- Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
- Corresponding author. Oslo University Hospital HF Psychosis Research Unit/TOP, P.O. Box 4956 Nydalen, N-0424, Oslo, Norway.
| | - Thor Ueland
- NORMENT Centre, Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway
- Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
- Research Institute of Internal Medicine, Oslo University Hospital, Rikshospitalet, Oslo, Norway
- KG Jebsen Inflammatory Research Center, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Maren Caroline Frogner Werner
- NORMENT Centre, Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway
- Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Gabriela Hjell
- NORMENT Centre, Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway
- Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
- Department of Psychiatry, Østfold Hospital, Graalum, Norway
| | - Linn Rødevand
- NORMENT Centre, Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway
- Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Linn Sofie Sæther
- NORMENT Centre, Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway
- Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Synve Hoffart Lunding
- NORMENT Centre, Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway
- Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Ingrid Torp Johansen
- NORMENT Centre, Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway
- Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Torill Ueland
- NORMENT Centre, Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway
- Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
- Department of Psychology, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Trine Vik Lagerberg
- NORMENT Centre, Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway
| | - Ingrid Melle
- NORMENT Centre, Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway
- Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Srdjan Djurovic
- Department of Medical Genetics, Oslo University Hospital and University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
- NORMENT, Department of Clinical Science, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway
| | - Ole Andreas Andreassen
- NORMENT Centre, Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway
- Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Nils Eiel Steen
- NORMENT Centre, Division of Mental Health and Addiction, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway
- Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
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24
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Zhao F, Li B, Yang W, Ge T, Cui R. Brain-immune interaction mechanisms: Implications for cognitive dysfunction in psychiatric disorders. Cell Prolif 2022; 55:e13295. [PMID: 35860850 PMCID: PMC9528770 DOI: 10.1111/cpr.13295] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2021] [Revised: 04/28/2022] [Accepted: 06/07/2022] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Objectives Cognitive dysfunction has been identified as a major symptom of a series of psychiatric disorders. Multidisciplinary studies have shown that cognitive dysfunction is monitored by a two‐way interaction between the neural and immune systems. However, the specific mechanisms of cognitive dysfunction in immune response and brain immune remain unclear. Materials and methods In this review, we summarized the relevant research to uncover our comprehension of the brain–immune interaction mechanisms underlying cognitive decline. Results The pathophysiological mechanisms of brain‐immune interactions in psychiatric‐based cognitive dysfunction involve several specific immune molecules and their associated signaling pathways, impairments in neural and synaptic plasticity, and the potential neuro‐immunological mechanism of stress. Conclusions Therefore, this review may provide a better theoretical basis for integrative therapeutic considerations for psychiatric disorders associated with cognitive dysfunction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fangyi Zhao
- Jilin Provincial Key Laboratory on Molecular and Chemical Genetic, The Second Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun, China
| | - Bingjin Li
- Jilin Provincial Key Laboratory on Molecular and Chemical Genetic, The Second Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun, China
| | - Wei Yang
- Jilin Provincial Key Laboratory on Molecular and Chemical Genetic, The Second Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun, China
| | - Tongtong Ge
- Jilin Provincial Key Laboratory on Molecular and Chemical Genetic, The Second Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun, China
| | - Ranji Cui
- Jilin Provincial Key Laboratory on Molecular and Chemical Genetic, The Second Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun, China
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25
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Jansma J, van Essen R, Haarman BCM, Chatziioannou AC, Borkent J, Ioannou M, van Hemert S, Sommer IEC, El Aidy S. Metabolic phenotyping reveals a potential link between elevated faecal amino acids, diet and symptom severity in individuals with severe mental illness. J Psychiatr Res 2022; 151:507-515. [PMID: 35636025 DOI: 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2022.05.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2021] [Revised: 04/06/2022] [Accepted: 05/09/2022] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
The brain-gut axis is increasingly recognized as an important contributing factor in the onset and progression of severe mental illnesses such as schizophrenia spectrum disorders and bipolar disorder. This study investigates associations between levels of faecal metabolites identified using 1H-NMR, clinical parameters, and dietary components of forty-two individuals diagnosed in a transdiagnostic approach to have severe mental illness. Faecal levels of the amino acids; alanine, leucine, and valine showed a significant positive correlation with psychiatric symptom severity as well as with dairy intake. Overall, this study proposes a diet-induced link between the brain-gut axis and the severity of psychiatric symptoms, which could be valuable in the design of novel dietary or therapeutic interventions to improve psychiatric symptoms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jack Jansma
- Host-microbe Interactions, Groningen Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology Institute (GBB), University of Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Rogier van Essen
- Host-microbe Interactions, Groningen Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology Institute (GBB), University of Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands
| | | | | | - Jenny Borkent
- Department of Biomedical Sciences of Cells & Systems, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Magdalini Ioannou
- Department of Psychiatry, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands; Department of Biomedical Sciences of Cells & Systems, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands
| | | | - Iris E C Sommer
- Department of Biomedical Sciences of Cells & Systems, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands.
| | - Sahar El Aidy
- Host-microbe Interactions, Groningen Biomolecular Sciences and Biotechnology Institute (GBB), University of Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands.
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26
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Nazarinia D, Behzadifard M, Gholampour J, Karimi R, Gholampour M. Eotaxin-1 (CCL11) in neuroinflammatory disorders and possible role in COVID-19 neurologic complications. Acta Neurol Belg 2022; 122:865-869. [PMID: 35690992 PMCID: PMC9188656 DOI: 10.1007/s13760-022-01984-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2021] [Accepted: 05/18/2022] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
The related neurologic complications of SARS-CoV-2 infection in COVID-19 patients and survivors comprise symptoms including depression, anxiety, muscle pain, dizziness, headaches, fatigue, and anosmia/hyposmia that may continue for months. Recent studies have been demonstrated that chemokines have brain-specific attraction and effects such as chemotaxis, cell adhesion, modulation of neuroendocrine functions, and neuroinflammation. CCL11 is a member of the eotaxin family that is chemotactic agents for eosinophils and participate in innate immunity. Eotaxins may exert physiological and pathological functions in the central nerve system, and CCL11 may induce neuronal cytotoxicity effects by inducing the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) in microglia cells. Plasma levels of CCL11 elevated in neuroinflammation and neurodegenerative disorders. COVID-19 patients display elevations in CCL11 levels. As CCL11 plays roles in physiosomatic and neuroinflammation, analyzing the level of this chemokine in COVID-19 patients during hospitalization and to predicting post-COVID-19-related neurologic complications may be worthwhile. Moreover, using chemokine modulators may be helpful in lessening the neurologic complications in such patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Donya Nazarinia
- Department of Physiology, School of Paramedical Sciences, Dezful University of Medical Sciences, Dezful, Iran
| | - Mahin Behzadifard
- Department of Physiology, School of Paramedical Sciences, Dezful University of Medical Sciences, Dezful, Iran.
| | - Javad Gholampour
- Department of Nursing, Faculty of Nursing and Midwifery, Mashhad Branch of Islamic Azad University, Mashhad, Iran
| | - Roqaye Karimi
- Department of Hematology and Cell Therapy, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Tarbiat Modares University, Tehran, Iran
| | - Mohammadali Gholampour
- Department of Medicine, Lung Biology Center, Cardiovascular Research Institute, University of California, San Francisco, CA, USA
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27
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Mostafa M, Fathy AA, Elwasify M, Abdelsalam M. Analysis of selected polymorphisms in FOXP3 gene in a cohort of Egyptian patients with schizophrenia. J Genet Eng Biotechnol 2022; 20:83. [PMID: 35641708 PMCID: PMC9156649 DOI: 10.1186/s43141-022-00371-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/07/2021] [Accepted: 05/20/2022] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Schizophrenia is a chronic mental disorder with different symptoms. The environmental and genetic factors are suggested to be the etiology of schizophrenia. However, the exact cause and pathogenesis of schizophrenia are still unclear. Different studies suggested that the immune system may have a role in schizophrenia. A genetic study found a relation between the disease and the HLA region on the sixth chromosome. Regulatory T cells (Treg) have a role in the regulation of immune response, especially the balance between TH1 and TH2 cells. The FOXP3 protein is a key regulator for Treg cell's functions. FOXP3 is a transcriptional factor, and its gene is present on the short arm of the X chromosome. The selected SNPs present in the promoter region which act as binding sites for transcriptional factors. This study investigated FOXP3 gene polymorphisms (rs3761548, rs3761549, and rs2232365) in Egyptian patients with schizophrenia. There are no previous studies about the association of FOXP3 gene polymorphisms with schizophrenia. The three selected single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were investigated using polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) for 125 schizophrenia patients and 160 healthy controls. The Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS) was used to evaluate patients with schizophrenia. RESULTS No significant associations were found between schizophrenia patients and healthy controls for the alleles and genotypes of the selected SNPs (P-value > 0.05). However, a significant association with ACC and ATC haplotypes was detected (P-value 0.001). No significant association was detected between the PANSS score and any of the studied SNPs. CONCLUSION The ATC haplotype of rs2232365, rs3761549, and rs3761548 could be considered a risk factor for schizophrenia in Egyptian patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maged Mostafa
- Clinical Pathology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Mansoura University, Mansoura, Egypt
| | - Aya Ahmed Fathy
- Public Health and Community Department, Faculty of Medicine, Mansoura University, Mansoura, Egypt
| | - Mohamed Elwasify
- Psychiatry Department, Faculty of Medicine, Mansoura University, Mansoura, Egypt
| | - Maha Abdelsalam
- Clinical Pathology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Mansoura University, Mansoura, Egypt. .,Immunology Department, Egypt Center for Research and Regenerative Medicine (ECRRM), Cairo, Egypt.
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28
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Li Z, Li X, Jin M, Liu Y, He Y, Jia N, Cui X, Liu Y, Hu G, Yu Q. Identification of potential blood biomarkers for early diagnosis of schizophrenia through RNA sequencing analysis. J Psychiatr Res 2022; 147:39-49. [PMID: 35016150 DOI: 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2022.01.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2021] [Revised: 12/06/2021] [Accepted: 01/03/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Schizophrenia (SCZ) is a highly heritable, polygenic complex mental disorder with imprecise diagnostic boundaries. Finding sensitive and specific novel biomarkers to improve the biological homogeneity of SCZ diagnosis is still one of the research hotspots. To identify the blood specific diagnostic biomarkers of SCZ, we performed RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) on 30 peripheral blood samples from 15 first-episode drug-naïve SCZ patients and 15 healthy controls (CTL). By performing multiple bioinformatics analysis algorithms based on RNA-seq data and microarray datasets, including differential expression genes (DEGs) analysis, WGCNA and CIBERSORT, we first identified 6 specific key genes (TOMM7, SNRPG, KRT1, AQP10, TMEM14B and CLEC12A) in SCZ. Moreover, we found that the proportions of lymphocyte, monocyte and neutrophils were significantly distinct in SCZ patients with CTL samples. Therefore, combining various features including age, sex and the novel blood biomarkers, we constructed the risk prediction model with three classifiers (RF: Random Forest; SVM: support vector machine; DT: decision tree) through repeated k-fold cross validation ensuring better generalizability. Finest result of Area under Receiver Operating Characteristic (AUROC) score of 0.91 was achieved by RF classifier and with a comparable good performance of AUROC 0.77 in external validation dataset. A lower AUROC of 0.63 was demonstrated when it was further applied to a Bipolar disorder (BPD) cohort. In conclusion, the study identified three peripheral core immunocytes and six key genes associated with the occurrence of SCZ, and further studies are required to test and validate these novel biomarkers for early diagnosis and treatment of SCZ.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhijun Li
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Jilin University, Changchun, 130021, China
| | - Xinwei Li
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Jilin University, Changchun, 130021, China
| | - Mengdi Jin
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Jilin University, Changchun, 130021, China
| | - Yang Liu
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Jilin University, Changchun, 130021, China
| | - Yang He
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Jilin University, Changchun, 130021, China
| | - Ningning Jia
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Jilin University, Changchun, 130021, China
| | - Xingyao Cui
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Jilin University, Changchun, 130021, China
| | - Yane Liu
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Jilin University, Changchun, 130021, China
| | - Guoyan Hu
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Jilin University, Changchun, 130021, China
| | - Qiong Yu
- Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Jilin University, Changchun, 130021, China.
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29
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Fathian F, Gjestad R, Kroken RA, Løberg EM, Reitan SK, Fleichhacker WW, Rettenbacher M, Larsen TK, Joa I, Stabell LA, Kjelby E, Sinkevicute I, Alisauskiene R, Steen VM, Johnsen E. Association between C-reactive protein levels and antipsychotic treatment during 12 months follow-up period after acute psychosis. Schizophr Res 2022; 241:174-183. [PMID: 35131596 DOI: 10.1016/j.schres.2022.01.049] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/05/2021] [Revised: 01/04/2022] [Accepted: 01/22/2022] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND A potential role of inflammatory pathways in the pathology of schizophrenia has been suggested for at least a subgroup of patients. Elevated levels of the inflammatory marker C-reactive protein (CRP) have been observed, with associations to pathogenesis and symptoms. The current evidence regarding effects of antipsychotics on CRP levels is ambiguous. OBJECTIVES To examine and compare the influence on CRP levels of three pharmacologically diverse new generation antipsychotics during a one-year follow-up in schizophrenia spectrum disorder. METHODS In a multicenter, pragmatic and rater-blinded randomized trial, the effects of amisulpride, aripiprazole and olanzapine were compared in 128 patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorder. All had positive symptoms of psychosis at study entry. Clinical and laboratory assessments including the measurement of CRP levels were conducted at baseline, and 1, 3, 6, 12, 26, 39, and 52 weeks thereafter. RESULTS For all antipsychotic drugs analysed together, there was an increase in CRP levels during the one-year follow-up. Aripiprazole, as opposed to amisulpride and olanzapine, was associated with a reduced CRP level after one week, after which the CRP level caught up with the other drugs. Compared to those previously exposed to antipsychotic drugs, antipsychotic-naïve patients had lower CRP levels at all follow-up time points, but with the same temporal patterns of change. CONCLUSION Treatment with amisulpride, aripiprazole and olanzapine showed different effects on CRP levels in patients with schizophrenia spectrum disorders, modified by previous antipsychotics exposure status. This finding suggests that antipsychotic drugs may vary with respect to their influence on pro-inflammatory pathways. TRIAL REGISTRATION ClinicalTrials.gov ID: NCT01446328; URL: http://www. CLINICALTRIALS gov/.
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Affiliation(s)
- Farivar Fathian
- Division of Psychiatry and NORMENT Centre of Excellence, Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway.
| | - Rolf Gjestad
- Division of Psychiatry and NORMENT Centre of Excellence, Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway; Faculty of Psychology, Department of Clinical Psychology, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway; Centre for Research and Education in Forensic Psychiatry, Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway
| | - Rune A Kroken
- Division of Psychiatry and NORMENT Centre of Excellence, Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway; Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway
| | - Else-Marie Løberg
- Division of Psychiatry and NORMENT Centre of Excellence, Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway; Department of Addiction Medicine, Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway; Faculty of Psychology, Department of Clinical Psychology, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway
| | - Solveig Klæbo Reitan
- Department of Mental Health, St. Olav University Hospital, 7006 Trondheim, Norway; Department of Mental Health, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, NTNU, Trondheim, Norway
| | - W Wolfgang Fleichhacker
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Medical University of Innsbruck, Innrain 52, Innsbruck, Austria
| | - Maria Rettenbacher
- Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Psychosomatics, Medical University of Innsbruck, Innrain 52, Innsbruck, Austria
| | - Tor K Larsen
- Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway; TIPS, Network for Clinical Research in Psychosis, Stavanger University Hospital, Stavanger, Norway
| | - Inge Joa
- TIPS, Network for Clinical Research in Psychosis, Stavanger University Hospital, Stavanger, Norway; Faculty of Health, Network for Medical Sciences, University of Stavanger, Stavanger, Norway
| | - Lena Antonsen Stabell
- Division of Psychiatry and NORMENT Centre of Excellence, Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway; Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway
| | - Eirik Kjelby
- Division of Psychiatry and NORMENT Centre of Excellence, Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway
| | - Igne Sinkevicute
- Division of Psychiatry and NORMENT Centre of Excellence, Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway; Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway
| | - Renata Alisauskiene
- Division of Psychiatry and NORMENT Centre of Excellence, Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway; Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway
| | - Vidar M Steen
- NORMENT Centre of Excellence, Department of Clinical Science, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway; Dr. Einar Martens Research Group for Biological Psychiatry, Department of Medical Genetics, Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway
| | - Erik Johnsen
- Division of Psychiatry and NORMENT Centre of Excellence, Haukeland University Hospital, Bergen, Norway; Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway
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30
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Schizophrenia is defined by cell-specific neuropathology and multiple neurodevelopmental mechanisms in patient-derived cerebral organoids. Mol Psychiatry 2022; 27:1416-1434. [PMID: 34789849 PMCID: PMC9095467 DOI: 10.1038/s41380-021-01316-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 20.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2021] [Revised: 08/03/2021] [Accepted: 09/22/2021] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
Due to an inability to ethically access developing human brain tissue as well as identify prospective cases, early-arising neurodevelopmental and cell-specific signatures of Schizophrenia (Scz) have remained unknown and thus undefined. To overcome these challenges, we utilized patient-derived induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) to generate 3D cerebral organoids to model neuropathology of Scz during this critical period. We discovered that Scz organoids exhibited ventricular neuropathology resulting in altered progenitor survival and disrupted neurogenesis. This ultimately yielded fewer neurons within developing cortical fields of Scz organoids. Single-cell sequencing revealed that Scz progenitors were specifically depleted of neuronal programming factors leading to a remodeling of cell-lineages, altered differentiation trajectories, and distorted cortical cell-type diversity. While Scz organoids were similar in their macromolecular diversity to organoids generated from healthy controls (Ctrls), four GWAS factors (PTN, COMT, PLCL1, and PODXL) and peptide fragments belonging to the POU-domain transcription factor family (e.g., POU3F2/BRN2) were altered. This revealed that Scz organoids principally differed not in their proteomic diversity, but specifically in their total quantity of disease and neurodevelopmental factors at the molecular level. Single-cell sequencing subsequently identified cell-type specific alterations in neuronal programming factors as well as a developmental switch in neurotrophic growth factor expression, indicating that Scz neuropathology can be encoded on a cell-type-by-cell-type basis. Furthermore, single-cell sequencing also specifically replicated the depletion of BRN2 (POU3F2) and PTN in both Scz progenitors and neurons. Subsequently, in two mechanistic rescue experiments we identified that the transcription factor BRN2 and growth factor PTN operate as mechanistic substrates of neurogenesis and cellular survival, respectively, in Scz organoids. Collectively, our work suggests that multiple mechanisms of Scz exist in patient-derived organoids, and that these disparate mechanisms converge upon primordial brain developmental pathways such as neuronal differentiation, survival, and growth factor support, which may amalgamate to elevate intrinsic risk of Scz.
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Dedic N, Dworak H, Zeni C, Rutigliano G, Howes OD. Therapeutic Potential of TAAR1 Agonists in Schizophrenia: Evidence from Preclinical Models and Clinical Studies. Int J Mol Sci 2021; 22:ijms222413185. [PMID: 34947997 PMCID: PMC8704992 DOI: 10.3390/ijms222413185] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2021] [Revised: 11/29/2021] [Accepted: 12/01/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Trace amine-associated receptor 1 (TAAR1) has emerged as a promising therapeutic target for neuropsychiatric disorders due to its ability to modulate monoaminergic and glutamatergic neurotransmission. In particular, agonist compounds have generated interest as potential treatments for schizophrenia and other psychoses due to TAAR1-mediated regulation of dopaminergic tone. Here, we review unmet needs in schizophrenia, the current state of knowledge in TAAR1 circuit biology and neuropharmacology, including preclinical behavioral, imaging, and cellular evidence in glutamatergic, dopaminergic and genetic models linked to the pathophysiology of psychotic, negative and cognitive symptoms. Clinical trial data for TAAR1 drug candidates are reviewed and contrasted with antipsychotics. The identification of endogenous TAAR1 ligands and subsequent development of small-molecule agonists has revealed antipsychotic-, anxiolytic-, and antidepressant-like properties, as well as pro-cognitive and REM-sleep suppressing effects of TAAR1 activation in rodents and non-human primates. Ulotaront, the first TAAR1 agonist to progress to randomized controlled clinical trials, has demonstrated efficacy in the treatment of schizophrenia, while another, ralmitaront, is currently being evaluated in clinical trials in schizophrenia. Coupled with the preclinical findings, this provides a rationale for further investigation and development of this new pharmacological class for the treatment of schizophrenia and other psychiatric disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nina Dedic
- Sunovion Pharmaceuticals, Marlborough, MA 01752, USA; (H.D.); (C.Z.)
- Correspondence:
| | - Heather Dworak
- Sunovion Pharmaceuticals, Marlborough, MA 01752, USA; (H.D.); (C.Z.)
| | - Courtney Zeni
- Sunovion Pharmaceuticals, Marlborough, MA 01752, USA; (H.D.); (C.Z.)
| | - Grazia Rutigliano
- Department of Pathology, University of Pisa, via Savi 10, 56126 Pisa, Italy;
- Institute of Clinical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ, UK;
| | - Oliver D. Howes
- Institute of Clinical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ, UK;
- Department of Psychosis Studies, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, Kings College London, London SE5 8AF, UK
- Psychiatric Imaging Group, Medical Research Council, London Institute of Medical Sciences, Hammersmith Hospital, London W12 0NN, UK
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Guerrin CGJ, Doorduin J, Sommer IE, de Vries EFJ. The dual hit hypothesis of schizophrenia: Evidence from animal models. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2021; 131:1150-1168. [PMID: 34715148 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2021.10.025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2021] [Revised: 10/21/2021] [Accepted: 10/24/2021] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Schizophrenia is a heterogeneous psychiatric disorder, which can severely impact social and professional functioning. Epidemiological and clinical studies show that schizophrenia has a multifactorial aetiology comprising genetic and environmental risk factors. Although several risk factors have been identified, it is still not clear how they result in schizophrenia. This knowledge gap, however, can be investigated in animal studies. In this review, we summarise animal studies regarding molecular and cellular mechanisms through which genetic and environmental factors may affect brain development, ultimately causing schizophrenia. Preclinical studies suggest that early environmental risk factors can affect the immune, GABAergic, glutamatergic, or dopaminergic system and thus increase the susceptibility to another risk factor later in life. A second insult, like social isolation, stress, or drug abuse, can further disrupt these systems and the interactions between them, leading to behavioural abnormalities. Surprisingly, first insults like maternal infection and early maternal separation can also have protective effects. Single gene mutations associated with schizophrenia did not have a major impact on the susceptibility to subsequent environmental hits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cyprien G J Guerrin
- Department of Nuclear Medicine and Medical Imaging, University of Groningen, University Medical Centre Groningen, Hanzeplein 1, 9713, GZ, Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Janine Doorduin
- Department of Nuclear Medicine and Medical Imaging, University of Groningen, University Medical Centre Groningen, Hanzeplein 1, 9713, GZ, Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Iris E Sommer
- Department of Biomedical Sciences of Cells and Systems, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Hanzeplein 1, 9713, GZ, Groningen, the Netherlands
| | - Erik F J de Vries
- Department of Nuclear Medicine and Medical Imaging, University of Groningen, University Medical Centre Groningen, Hanzeplein 1, 9713, GZ, Groningen, the Netherlands.
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De Picker LJ, Victoriano GM, Richards R, Gorvett AJ, Lyons S, Buckland GR, Tofani T, Norman JL, Chatelet DS, Nicoll JAR, Boche D. Immune environment of the brain in schizophrenia and during the psychotic episode: A human post-mortem study. Brain Behav Immun 2021; 97:319-327. [PMID: 34339805 PMCID: PMC8475749 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2021.07.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/12/2021] [Revised: 07/22/2021] [Accepted: 07/24/2021] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
A causal relationship between immune dysregulation and schizophrenia has been supported by genome-wide association studies and epidemiological evidence. It remains unclear to what extent the brain immune environment is implicated in this hypothesis. We investigated the immunophenotype of microglia and the presence of perivascular macrophages and T lymphocytes in post-mortem brain tissue. Dorsal prefrontal cortex of 40 controls (22F:18M) and 37 (10F:27M) schizophrenia cases, of whom 16 had active psychotic symptoms at the time of death, was immunostained for seven markers of microglia (CD16, CD32a, CD64, CD68, HLA-DR, Iba1 and P2RY12), two markers for perivascular macrophages (CD163 and CD206) and T-lymphocytes (CD3). Automated quantification was blinded to the case designation and performed separately on the grey and white matter. 3D reconstruction of Iba1-positive microglia was performed in selected cases. An increased cortical expression of microglial Fcγ receptors (CD64 F = 7.92, p = 0.007; CD64/HLA-DR ratio F = 5.02, p = 0.029) highlights the importance of communication between the central and peripheral immune systems in schizophrenia. Patients in whom psychotic symptoms were present at death demonstrated an age-dependent increase of Iba1 and increased CD64/HLA-DR ratios relative to patients without psychotic symptoms. Microglia in schizophrenia demonstrated a primed/reactive morphology. A potential role for T-lymphocytes was observed, but we did not confirm the presence of recruited macrophages in the brains of schizophrenia patients. Taking in account the limitations of a post-mortem study, our findings support the hypothesis of an alteration of the brain immune environment in schizophrenia, with symptomatic state- and age-dependent effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Livia J De Picker
- Collaborative Antwerp Psychiatric Research Institute, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium; University Psychiatric Department Campus Duffel, Duffel, Belgium
| | - Gerardo Mendez Victoriano
- Clinical Neurosciences, Clinical and Experimental Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK
| | - Rhys Richards
- Clinical Neurosciences, Clinical and Experimental Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK
| | - Alexander J Gorvett
- Clinical Neurosciences, Clinical and Experimental Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK
| | - Simeon Lyons
- Clinical Neurosciences, Clinical and Experimental Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK
| | - George R Buckland
- Clinical Neurosciences, Clinical and Experimental Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK
| | - Tommaso Tofani
- Psychiatry Unit, Health Science Department, University of Florence, Florence, Italy
| | - Jeanette L Norman
- Histochemistry Research Unit, Clinical and Experimental Sciences, Faculty of Medicine University of Southampton, Southampton, UK
| | - David S Chatelet
- Biomedical Imaging Unit, Southampton General Hospital, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK
| | - James A R Nicoll
- Clinical Neurosciences, Clinical and Experimental Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK; Department of Cellular Pathology, University Hospital Southampton NHS Foundation Trust, Southampton, UK
| | - Delphine Boche
- Clinical Neurosciences, Clinical and Experimental Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Southampton, Southampton, UK.
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Purves-Tyson TD, Brown AM, Weissleder C, Rothmond DA, Shannon Weickert C. Reductions in midbrain GABAergic and dopamine neuron markers are linked in schizophrenia. Mol Brain 2021; 14:96. [PMID: 34174930 PMCID: PMC8235806 DOI: 10.1186/s13041-021-00805-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2021] [Accepted: 06/07/2021] [Indexed: 01/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Reductions in the GABAergic neurotransmitter system exist across multiple brain regions in schizophrenia and encompass both pre- and postsynaptic components. While reduced midbrain GABAergic inhibitory neurotransmission may contribute to the hyperdopaminergia thought to underpin psychosis in schizophrenia, molecular changes consistent with this have not been reported. We hypothesised that reduced GABA-related molecular markers would be found in the midbrain of people with schizophrenia and that these would correlate with dopaminergic molecular changes. We hypothesised that downregulation of inhibitory neuron markers would be exacerbated in schizophrenia cases with high levels of neuroinflammation. Eight GABAergic-related transcripts were measured with quantitative PCR, and glutamate decarboxylase (GAD) 65/67 and GABAA alpha 3 (α3) (GABRA3) protein were measured with immunoblotting, in post-mortem midbrain (28/28 and 28/26 control/schizophrenia cases for mRNA and protein, respectively), and analysed by both diagnosis and inflammatory subgroups (as previously defined by higher levels of four pro-inflammatory cytokine transcripts). We found reductions (21 – 44%) in mRNA encoding both presynaptic and postsynaptic proteins, vesicular GABA transporter (VGAT), GAD1, and parvalbumin (PV) mRNAs and four alpha subunits (α1, α2, α3, α5) of the GABAA receptor in people with schizophrenia compared to controls (p < 0.05). Gene expression of somatostatin (SST) was unchanged (p = 0.485). We confirmed the reduction in GAD at the protein level (34%, p < 0.05). When stratifying by inflammation, only GABRA3 mRNA exhibited more pronounced changes in high compared to low inflammatory subgroups in schizophrenia. GABRA3 protein was expressed by 98% of tyrosine hydroxylase-positive neurons and was 23% lower in schizophrenia, though this did not reach statistical significance (p > 0.05). Expression of transcripts for GABAA receptor alpha subunits 2 and 3 (GABRA2, GABRA3) were positively correlated with tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) and dopamine transporter (DAT) transcripts in schizophrenia cases (GABRA2; r > 0.630, GABRA3; r > 0.762, all p < 0.001) but not controls (GABRA2; r < − 0.200, GABRA3; r < 0.310, all p > 0.05). Taken together, our results support a profound disruption to inhibitory neurotransmission in the substantia nigra regardless of inflammatory status, which provides a potential mechanism for disinhibition of nigrostriatal dopamine neurotransmission.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tertia D Purves-Tyson
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, 139 Barker Street, Margarete Ainsworth Building, Level 5, Randwick, NSW, 2031, Australia. .,School of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, 2052, Australia.
| | - Amelia M Brown
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, 139 Barker Street, Margarete Ainsworth Building, Level 5, Randwick, NSW, 2031, Australia
| | - Christin Weissleder
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, 139 Barker Street, Margarete Ainsworth Building, Level 5, Randwick, NSW, 2031, Australia
| | - Debora A Rothmond
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, 139 Barker Street, Margarete Ainsworth Building, Level 5, Randwick, NSW, 2031, Australia
| | - Cynthia Shannon Weickert
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, 139 Barker Street, Margarete Ainsworth Building, Level 5, Randwick, NSW, 2031, Australia. .,School of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, 2052, Australia. .,Department of Neuroscience & Physiology, Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, 13210, USA.
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Genome-wide bioinformatic analyses predict key host and viral factors in SARS-CoV-2 pathogenesis. Commun Biol 2021; 4:590. [PMID: 34002013 PMCID: PMC8128904 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-021-02095-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/20/2020] [Accepted: 04/05/2021] [Indexed: 02/03/2023] Open
Abstract
The novel betacoronavirus severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) caused a worldwide pandemic (COVID-19) after emerging in Wuhan, China. Here we analyzed public host and viral RNA sequencing data to better understand how SARS-CoV-2 interacts with human respiratory cells. We identified genes, isoforms and transposable element families that are specifically altered in SARS-CoV-2-infected respiratory cells. Well-known immunoregulatory genes including CSF2, IL32, IL-6 and SERPINA3 were differentially expressed, while immunoregulatory transposable element families were upregulated. We predicted conserved interactions between the SARS-CoV-2 genome and human RNA-binding proteins such as the heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein A1 (hnRNPA1) and eukaryotic initiation factor 4 (eIF4b). We also identified a viral sequence variant with a statistically significant skew associated with age of infection, that may contribute to intracellular host-pathogen interactions. These findings can help identify host mechanisms that can be targeted by prophylactics and/or therapeutics to reduce the severity of COVID-19.
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Panja D, Li Y, Ward ME, Li Z. miR-936 is Increased in Schizophrenia and Inhibits Neural Development and AMPA Receptor-Mediated Synaptic Transmission. Schizophr Bull 2021; 47:1795-1805. [PMID: 33940617 PMCID: PMC8530405 DOI: 10.1093/schbul/sbab046] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022]
Abstract
MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are non-coding RNAs that regulate gene expression and play important roles in the development and function of synapses. miR-936 is a primate-specific miRNA increased in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) of individuals with schizophrenia. The significance of miR-936 increase to schizophrenia is unknown. Here, we show that miR-936 in the human DLPFC is enriched in cortical layer 2/3 and expressed in glutamatergic and GABAergic neurons. miR-936 is increased from layers 2 to 6 of the DLPFC in schizophrenia samples. In neurons derived from human induced pluripotent stem cells (iNs), miR-936 reduces the number of excitatory synapses, inhibits AMPA receptor-mediated synaptic transmission, and increases intrinsic excitability. These effects are mediated by its target gene TMOD2. These results indicate that miR-936 restricts the number of synapses and the strength of glutamatergic synaptic transmission by inhibiting TMOD2 expression. miR-936 upregulation in the DLPFC, therefore, can reduce glutamatergic synapses and weaken excitatory synaptic transmission, which underlie the synaptic pathology and hypofrontality in schizophrenia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Debabrata Panja
- Section on Synapse Development and Plasticity, National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD
| | - You Li
- Section on Synapse Development and Plasticity, National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD
| | - Michael E Ward
- Inherited Neurodegenerative Diseases Unit, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD
| | - Zheng Li
- Section on Synapse Development and Plasticity, National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD,To whom correspondence should be addressed; National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Bldg 35A, Room 2C-1010, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA; tel: +1 301 594 2269, fax: +1 301 480 2561, e-mail:
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Brucella-Induced Acute Psychosis: A Novel Cause of Acute Psychosis. Case Rep Infect Dis 2021; 2021:6649717. [PMID: 33747578 PMCID: PMC7954612 DOI: 10.1155/2021/6649717] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2020] [Revised: 01/17/2021] [Accepted: 02/23/2021] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Infections have long been linked to psychosis and categorised within “secondary” psychoses. To date, there have been few reports of psychosis linked to brucellosis. This case report aims to present one such case. Case Presentation. A 31-year-old man was admitted to a general hospital with pyrexia, severe right upper quadrant pain, and an acute psychosis following a two-week holiday in South East Asia and the Mediterranean. Serological tests revealed that he had brucellosis. Following antibiotic treatment, the psychotic symptoms abated and he was discharged within ten days of hospitalisation. Conclusions This case of organic psychosis highlights the importance of considering brucellosis as a rare cause of acute psychosis. The exact mechanism of Brucella-induced psychosis remains unclear.
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Klyushnik TP, Barkhatova AN, Sheshenin VS, Androsova LV, Zozulya SA, Otman IN, Pochueva VV. [Specific features of immunological reactions in elderly and young patients with exacerbation of schizophrenia]. Zh Nevrol Psikhiatr Im S S Korsakova 2021; 121:53-59. [PMID: 33728851 DOI: 10.17116/jnevro202112102153] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To identify levels of inflammation markers (the enzymatic activity of leukocyte elastase (LE), the functional activity of the α1-proteinase inhibitor (α1-PI), autoantibodies to neurotrophin S100b and myelin basic protein (MBP)) in blood plasma of old- and young-aged patients with schizophrenia in comparison with features of the clinical course of schizophrenia. MATERIAL AND METHODS Two age groups of patients with schizophrenia were examined. The 1st group consisted of 19 female patients, aged 60 to 78 years (mean age 67.3±5.4 years), with disease duration from 0.5 months to 29 years (9.7±7.6). The 2nd group comprised 24 female patients, aged 19 to 42 years (mean age 26.8±6.3 years), with disease duration from 0.15 to 6.6 years (3.3±2.4). Nineteen age-matched healthy women were included in two control groups. Inflammatory and autoimmune markers were measured in blood plasma using «Neuro-immuno-test technology». RESULTS In the 1st group, a relative smoothness and rigidity of the productive symptoms profile, a reduction of disease progression and a tendency to the development of negative symptoms were established. The 2nd group was characterized by polymorphism, severity and dynamism of productive disorders, as well as the progression and lability of the schizophrenic process. The most significant differences in the spectrum of the analysed immune markers relate to the ratio of the activity of LE and its inhibitor α1-PI, i.e. proteinase-inhibitory index (PII). CONCLUSIONS The identified multidirectional changes of PII in elderly patients compared to the controls may reflect the imbalance of the inflammatory response and the role of this imbalance in shaping the characteristics of psychopathological symptoms in these patients.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | - S A Zozulya
- Mental Health Research Center, Moscow, Russia
| | - I N Otman
- Mental Health Research Center, Moscow, Russia
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Extracellular free water and glutathione in first-episode psychosis-a multimodal investigation of an inflammatory model for psychosis. Mol Psychiatry 2021; 26:761-771. [PMID: 31138893 PMCID: PMC6881530 DOI: 10.1038/s41380-019-0428-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2017] [Revised: 02/22/2019] [Accepted: 03/18/2019] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Evidence has been accumulating for an immune-based component to the etiology of psychotic disorders. Advancements in diffusion magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) have enabled estimation of extracellular free water (FW), a putative biomarker of neuroinflammation. Furthermore, inflammatory processes may be associated with altered brain levels of metabolites, such as glutathione (GSH). Consequently, we sought to test the hypotheses that FW is increased and associated with decreased GSH in patients with first-episode schizophrenia (SZ) compared with healthy controls (HC). SZ (n = 36) and HC (n = 40) subjects underwent a multi-shell diffusion MRI scan on a Siemens 3T scanner. 1H-MR spectroscopy data were acquired using a GSH-optimized MEGA-PRESS editing sequence and GSH/creatine ratios were calculated for DLPFC (SZ: n = 33, HC: n = 37) and visual cortex (SZ: n = 29, HC: n = 35) voxels. Symptoms and functioning were measured using the SANS, SAPS, BPRS, and GSF/GRF. SZ demonstrated significantly elevated FW in whole-brain gray (p = .001) but not white matter (p = .060). There was no significant difference between groups in GSH in either voxel. However, there was a significant negative correlation between DLPFC GSH and both whole-brain and DLPFC-specific gray matter FW in SZ (r = -.48 and -.47, respectively; both p < .05), while this relationship was nonsignificant in HC and in both groups in the visual cortex. These data illustrate an important relationship between a metabolite known to be important for immune function-GSH-and the diffusion extracellular FW measure, which provides additional support for these measures as neuroinflammatory biomarkers that could potentially provide tractable treatment targets to guide pharmacological intervention.
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Purves-Tyson TD, Weber-Stadlbauer U, Richetto J, Rothmond DA, Labouesse MA, Polesel M, Robinson K, Shannon Weickert C, Meyer U. Increased levels of midbrain immune-related transcripts in schizophrenia and in murine offspring after maternal immune activation. Mol Psychiatry 2021; 26:849-863. [PMID: 31168068 PMCID: PMC7910216 DOI: 10.1038/s41380-019-0434-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 69] [Impact Index Per Article: 23.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/19/2018] [Revised: 04/10/2019] [Accepted: 04/29/2019] [Indexed: 12/03/2022]
Abstract
The pathophysiology of dopamine dysregulation in schizophrenia involves alterations at the ventral midbrain level. Given that inflammatory mediators such as cytokines influence the functional properties of midbrain dopamine neurons, midbrain inflammation may play a role in schizophrenia by contributing to presynaptic dopamine abnormalities. Thus, we quantified inflammatory markers in dopaminergic areas of the midbrain of people with schizophrenia and matched controls. We also measured these markers in midbrain of mice exposed to maternal immune activation (MIA) during pregnancy, an established risk factor for schizophrenia and other psychiatric disorders. We found diagnostic increases in SERPINA3, TNFα, IL1β, IL6, and IL6ST transcripts in schizophrenia compared with controls (p < 0.02-0.001). The diagnostic differences in these immune markers were accounted for by a subgroup of schizophrenia cases (~ 45%, 13/28) showing high immune status. Consistent with the human cohort, we identified increased expression of immune markers in the midbrain of adult MIA offspring (SERPINA3, TNFα, and IL1β mRNAs, all p ≤ 0.01), which was driven by a subset of MIA offspring (~ 40%, 13/32) with high immune status. There were no diagnostic (human cohort) or group-wise (mouse cohort) differences in cellular markers indexing the density and/or morphology of microglia or astrocytes, but an increase in the transcription of microglial and astrocytic markers in schizophrenia cases and MIA offspring with high inflammation. These data demonstrate that immune-related changes in schizophrenia extend to dopaminergic areas of the midbrain and exist in the absence of changes in microglial cell number, but with putative evidence of microglial and astrocytic activation in the high immune subgroup. MIA may be one of the contributing factors underlying persistent neuroimmune changes in the midbrain of people with schizophrenia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tertia D Purves-Tyson
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW, 2031, Australia
- School of Psychiatry, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, 2052, Australia
| | - Ulrike Weber-Stadlbauer
- Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Zurich-Vetsuisse, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Juliet Richetto
- Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Zurich-Vetsuisse, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Debora A Rothmond
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW, 2031, Australia
| | - Marie A Labouesse
- Physiology and Behavior Laboratory, ETH Zurich, Schwerzenbach, Switzerland
- Department of Psychiatry, College of Physicians and Surgeons, Columbia University, 1051 Riverside Drive, NYC, 10032, NY, USA
| | | | - Kate Robinson
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW, 2031, Australia
| | - Cynthia Shannon Weickert
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW, 2031, Australia.
- School of Psychiatry, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, 2052, Australia.
- Department of Neuroscience and Physiology, Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, 13210, New York, USA.
| | - Urs Meyer
- Institute of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Zurich-Vetsuisse, Zurich, Switzerland.
- Neuroscience Centre Zurich, University of Zurich and ETH Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
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Interaction of maternal immune activation and genetic interneuronal inhibition. Brain Res 2021; 1759:147370. [PMID: 33600830 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2021.147370] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2020] [Revised: 02/07/2021] [Accepted: 02/09/2021] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
Genes and environment interact during intrauterine life, and potentially alter the developmental trajectory of the brain. This can result in life-long consequences on brain function. We have previously developed two transgenic mouse lines that suppress Gad1 expression in parvalbumin (PVALB) and neuropeptide Y (NPY) expressing interneuron populations using a bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC)-driven miRNA-based silencing technology. We were interested to assess if maternal immune activation (MIA), genetic interneuronal inhibition, and the combination of these two factors disrupt and result in long-term changes in neuroinflammatory gene expression, sterol biosynthesis, and acylcarnitine levels in the brain of maternally exposed offspring. Pregnant female WT mice were given a single intraperitoneal injection of saline or polyinosinic-polycytidilic acid [poly(I:C)] at E12.5. Brains of offspring were analyzed at postnatal day 90. We identified complex and persistent neuroinflammatory gene expression changes in the hippocampi of MIA-exposed offspring, as well in the hippocampi of Npy/Gad1 and Pvalb/Gad1 mice. In addition, both MIA and genetic inhibition altered the post-lanosterol sterol biosynthesis in the neocortex and disrupted the typical acylcarnitine profile. In conclusion, our findings suggest that both MIA and inhibition of interneuronal function have long-term consequences on critical homeostatic mechanisms of the brain, including immune function, sterol levels, and energy metabolism.
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Yang X, Li M, Jiang J, Hu X, Qing Y, Sun L, Yang T, Wang D, Cui G, Gao Y, Zhang J, Li X, Shen Y, Qin S, Wan C. Dysregulation of phospholipase and cyclooxygenase expression is involved in Schizophrenia. EBioMedicine 2021; 64:103239. [PMID: 33581645 PMCID: PMC7892797 DOI: 10.1016/j.ebiom.2021.103239] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2020] [Revised: 01/22/2021] [Accepted: 01/26/2021] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Schizophrenia (SZ) is a severe mental disease with highly heterogeneous clinical manifestations and pathological mechanisms. Schizophrenia is linked to abnormalities in cell membrane phospholipids and blunting of the niacin skin flush response, but the associations between these phenotypes and its molecular pathogenesis remain unclear. This study aimed to describe the PLA2/COX pathway, the key link between phospholipids and niacin flush, and to illustrate the pathogenic mechanisms in schizophrenia that mediate the above phenotypes. METHODS A total of 166 patients with schizophrenia and 54 healthy controls were recruited in this study and assigned to a discovery set and a validation set. We assessed the mRNA levels of 19 genes related to the PLA2/COX cascade in leukocytes by real-time PCR. Plasma IL-6 levels were measured with an ELISA kit. Genetic association analysis was performed on PLA2G4A and PTGS2 to investigate their potential relationship with blunted niacin-skin response in an independent sample set. FINDINGS Six of the 19 genes in the PLA2/COX pathway exhibited significant differences between schizophrenia and healthy controls. The disturbance of the pathway indicates the activation of arachidonic acid (AA) hydrolysis and metabolization, resulting in the abnormalities of membrane lipid homeostasis and immune function, further increasing the risk of schizophrenia. On the other hand, the active process of AA hydrolysis from cell membrane phospholipids and decreased transcription of CREB1, COX-2 and PTGER4 may explain the reported findings of a blunted niacin response in schizophrenia. The significant genetic associations between PLA2G4A and PTGS2 with the niacin-skin responses further support the inference. INTERPRETATION These results suggested that the activation of AA hydrolysis and the imbalance in COX-1 and COX-2 expression are involved in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia and blunting of the niacin flush response. FUNDING This work was supported by the National Key R&D Program of China (2016YFC1306900, 2016YFC1306802); the National Natural Science Foundation of China (81971254, 81771440, 81901354); Interdisciplinary Program of Shanghai Jiao Tong University (ZH2018ZDA40, YG2019GD04, YG2016MS48); Grants of Shanghai Brain-Intelligence Project from STCSM (16JC1420500); Shanghai Key Laboratory of Psychotic Disorders (13DZ2260500); and Shanghai Municipal Science and Technology Major Project (2017SHZDZX01); China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (2018M642029, 2018M630442, 2019M661526, 2020T130407); Natural Science Foundation of Shanghai (20ZR1426700); and Startup Fund for Youngman Research at SJTU (19 × 100040033).
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Affiliation(s)
- Xuhan Yang
- Bio-X Institutes, Key Laboratory for the Genetics of Developmental and Neuropsychiatric Disorders, Ministry of Education, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China
| | - Minghui Li
- Bio-X Institutes, Key Laboratory for the Genetics of Developmental and Neuropsychiatric Disorders, Ministry of Education, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China
| | - Jie Jiang
- Bio-X Institutes, Key Laboratory for the Genetics of Developmental and Neuropsychiatric Disorders, Ministry of Education, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China
| | - Xiaowen Hu
- Bio-X Institutes, Key Laboratory for the Genetics of Developmental and Neuropsychiatric Disorders, Ministry of Education, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China
| | - Ying Qing
- Bio-X Institutes, Key Laboratory for the Genetics of Developmental and Neuropsychiatric Disorders, Ministry of Education, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China
| | - Liya Sun
- Bio-X Institutes, Key Laboratory for the Genetics of Developmental and Neuropsychiatric Disorders, Ministry of Education, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China
| | - Tianqi Yang
- Bio-X Institutes, Key Laboratory for the Genetics of Developmental and Neuropsychiatric Disorders, Ministry of Education, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China
| | - Dandan Wang
- Bio-X Institutes, Key Laboratory for the Genetics of Developmental and Neuropsychiatric Disorders, Ministry of Education, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China
| | - Gaoping Cui
- Bio-X Institutes, Key Laboratory for the Genetics of Developmental and Neuropsychiatric Disorders, Ministry of Education, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China
| | - Yan Gao
- Bio-X Institutes, Key Laboratory for the Genetics of Developmental and Neuropsychiatric Disorders, Ministry of Education, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China
| | - Juan Zhang
- Bio-X Institutes, Key Laboratory for the Genetics of Developmental and Neuropsychiatric Disorders, Ministry of Education, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China
| | - Xingwang Li
- Bio-X Institutes, Key Laboratory for the Genetics of Developmental and Neuropsychiatric Disorders, Ministry of Education, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China
| | - Yuhua Shen
- The Fourth People's Hospital of Wuhu, Wuhu, China
| | - Shengying Qin
- Bio-X Institutes, Key Laboratory for the Genetics of Developmental and Neuropsychiatric Disorders, Ministry of Education, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China; Shanghai Mental Health Center, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Psychiatry Disorders, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China
| | - Chunling Wan
- Bio-X Institutes, Key Laboratory for the Genetics of Developmental and Neuropsychiatric Disorders, Ministry of Education, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China; Shanghai Mental Health Center, Shanghai Key Laboratory of Psychiatry Disorders, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China.
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Hidese S, Hattori K, Sasayama D, Tsumagari T, Miyakawa T, Matsumura R, Yokota Y, Ishida I, Matsuo J, Yoshida S, Ota M, Kunugi H. Cerebrospinal Fluid Inflammatory Cytokine Levels in Patients With Major Psychiatric Disorders: A Multiplex Immunoassay Study. Front Pharmacol 2021; 11:594394. [PMID: 33708113 PMCID: PMC7941212 DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2020.594394] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2020] [Accepted: 12/29/2020] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Aim: Accumulating evidence suggests that neural inflammation plays an important role in psychiatric disorders. We aimed to identify inflammatory cytokines involved in the pathophysiology of such disorders by quantifying them in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples from a large sample of patients with major psychiatric disorders and healthy controls. Methods: The subjects included 94 patients with schizophrenia, 68 with bipolar disorder, 104 with major depressive disorder, and 118 healthy controls, matched for age, sex, and ethnicity (Japanese). Lumbar puncture was performed to collect these CSF samples. A multiplex immunoassay was then performed to measure CSF cytokine levels using magnetic on-bead antibody conjugation for 19 inflammatory cytokines. Results: CSF interferon-β level was significantly higher in total psychiatric patients than in healthy controls (corrected p = 0.000029). In diagnostic group comparisons, CSF interferon-β level was significantly higher in patients with schizophrenia, or bipolar disorder (corrected p = 0.000047 or 0.0034) than in healthy controls. Conclusion: We present novel evidence that CSF IFN-β level showed prominent statistical differences between psychiatric groups and healthy controls. This suggests IFN-β as the most important player among the 19 cytokines tested here in the inflammation-related pathophysiology of major psychiatric disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shinsuke Hidese
- Department of Mental Disorder Research, National Institute of Neuroscience, National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Kotaro Hattori
- Department of Mental Disorder Research, National Institute of Neuroscience, National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry, Tokyo, Japan.,Medical Genome Center, National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Daimei Sasayama
- Department of Mental Disorder Research, National Institute of Neuroscience, National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Takuya Tsumagari
- Department of Mental Disorder Research, National Institute of Neuroscience, National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry, Tokyo, Japan.,Medical Genome Center, National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Tomoko Miyakawa
- Medical Genome Center, National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Ryo Matsumura
- Medical Genome Center, National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Yuuki Yokota
- Department of Mental Disorder Research, National Institute of Neuroscience, National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry, Tokyo, Japan.,Medical Genome Center, National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Ikki Ishida
- Department of Mental Disorder Research, National Institute of Neuroscience, National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Junko Matsuo
- Department of Mental Disorder Research, National Institute of Neuroscience, National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Sumiko Yoshida
- Medical Genome Center, National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry, Tokyo, Japan.,Department of Psychiatry, National Center Hospital, National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Miho Ota
- Department of Mental Disorder Research, National Institute of Neuroscience, National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Hiroshi Kunugi
- Department of Mental Disorder Research, National Institute of Neuroscience, National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry, Tokyo, Japan.,Department of Psychiatry, Teikyo University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
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Chen LY, Qi J, Xu HL, Lin XY, Sun YJ, Ju SQ. The Value of Serum Cell-Free DNA Levels in Patients With Schizophrenia. Front Psychiatry 2021; 12:637789. [PMID: 33859582 PMCID: PMC8042127 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2021.637789] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/04/2020] [Accepted: 03/08/2021] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Background: Schizophrenia is a severe mental disorder, which has a major impact on the quality of life and imposes a huge burden on the family. However, the pathogenesis of schizophrenia remains unclear and there are no specific biomarkers. Therefore, we intend to explore whether cf-DNA levels are related to the occurrence and development of schizophrenia. Methods: We analyzed and compared the concentration of cf-DNA in 174 SZ patients and 100 matched healthy controls by using quantitative real-time PCR by amplifying the Alu repeats. Results: We found that cf-DNA levels in peripheral blood reliably distinguished SZ patients from healthy controls (P < 0.05). The ROC analysis also supports the above conclusion. By tracking the absolute concentration of serum cf-DNA in primary cases, we found a distinct increase before treatment with antipsychotics, which decreased progressively after treatment. Conclusions: The present work indicates that cf-DNA may improve the efficiency of disease diagnosis, and the level of cf-DNA plays a predictive role in the development of schizophrenia. By evaluating the level of cf-DNA, we might play a certain role in a more reasonable and standardized clinical treatment of schizophrenia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ling-Yun Chen
- Center of Laboratory Medicine, Nantong Mental Health Center, Nantong, China
| | - Jing Qi
- Reaserch Center of Clinical Medicine, Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University, Nantong, China
| | - Hong-Lei Xu
- Neurology Laboratory, Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University, Nantong, China
| | - Xiang-Yun Lin
- School of Public Health, Nantong University, Nantong, China
| | - Ya-Jun Sun
- Center of Laboratory Medicine, Nantong Mental Health Center, Nantong, China
| | - Shao-Qing Ju
- Center of Laboratory Medicine, Affiliated Hospital of Nantong University, Nantong, China
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Gibson CL, Nia AB, Spriggs SA, DeFrancisco D, Swift A, Perkel C, Zhong X, Mazumdar M, Fernandez N, Patel M, Kim-Schulze S, Hurd YL. Cannabinoid use in psychotic patients impacts inflammatory levels and their association with psychosis severity. Psychiatry Res 2020; 293:113380. [PMID: 32818918 PMCID: PMC8292796 DOI: 10.1016/j.psychres.2020.113380] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2019] [Revised: 08/06/2020] [Accepted: 08/09/2020] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
Inflammatory abnormalities are well-documented in individuals with chronic psychotic disorders. Particular attention has focused on interleukin-6 (IL-6) and its correlation with psychotic symptom severity. Cannabis use is associated with an increased risk of psychosis and also has immunomodulating properties. It has been hypothesized that inflammatory disturbances are a common underlying pathology between cannabis use and psychosis. We measured inflammatory markers in individuals admitted to a psychiatric unit with acute psychosis who had toxicology positive for natural and/or synthetic cannabinoids (n = 59) compared to patients with negative cannabinoid toxicology (n = 60). Psychosis severity was assessed using the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS). While PANSS scores were similar between groups, cannabinoid-positive participants were more likely to receive pro re nata (PRN or as-needed) medications for agitation in the psychiatric emergency room, particularly synthetic cannabinoid-positive participants. In unadjusted models, cannabinoid-positive participants had lower interferon-γ (IFN-γ) levels (p = 0.046), but this finding was not significant after adjusting for covariates and multiple comparisons. Among cannabinoid-positive participants, IL-6 levels negatively correlated with PANSS total score (p = 0.040), as well as positive (p = 0.035) and negative (p = 0.024) subscales. Results suggest inflammatory alterations among psychotic individuals with comorbid cannabinoid use.
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Affiliation(s)
- Claire L. Gibson
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York City, NY, USA
| | - Anahita Bassir Nia
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York City, NY, USA
| | - Sharron A. Spriggs
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York City, NY, USA
| | - Daniel DeFrancisco
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York City, NY, USA
| | - Amy Swift
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York City, NY, USA
| | - Charles Perkel
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York City, NY, USA
| | - Xiaobo Zhong
- Population Health Science and Policy, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York City, NY, USA
| | - Madhu Mazumdar
- Population Health Science and Policy, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York City, NY, USA
| | - Nicolas Fernandez
- Human Immune Monitoring Center, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York City, NY, USA
| | - Manishkumar Patel
- Human Immune Monitoring Center, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York City, NY, USA
| | - Seunghee Kim-Schulze
- Human Immune Monitoring Center, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York City, NY, USA,Department of Oncological Science, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York City, NY, USA,Precision Immunology Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York City, NY, USA
| | - Yasmin L. Hurd
- Department of Psychiatry, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York City, NY, USA,Addiction Institute at Mount Sinai, New York City, NY, USA,Corresponding Author: Dr. Yasmin L. Hurd, 1470 Madison Avenue, Hess building for Science and Medicine, 10-105, New York, NY 10029, Phone: (212)824-9314; Fax: (646)-537-9598,
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Cai HQ, Weickert TW, Catts VS, Balzan R, Galletly C, Liu D, O'Donnell M, Shannon Weickert C. Altered levels of immune cell adhesion molecules are associated with memory impairment in schizophrenia and healthy controls. Brain Behav Immun 2020; 89:200-208. [PMID: 32540151 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2020.06.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2019] [Revised: 06/02/2020] [Accepted: 06/09/2020] [Indexed: 01/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Increased cytokines and increased intercellular adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM1) found in the schizophrenia prefrontal cortex and in the blood may relate to cognitive deficits. Endothelial ICAM1 regulates immune cell trafficking into the brain by binding to integrins located on the surface of leukocytes. Whether the circulating levels of the main ICAM1 adhesion partners, lymphocyte-function associated antigen-1 (LFA1) and complement receptor 3 (CR3), both integrins, are altered in schizophrenia is unknown. Gene expressions of ICAM1, LFA1 and CR3 were measured in leukocytes from 86 schizophrenia patients and 77 controls. Participants were also administered cognitive testing to determine the extent to which cognitive ability was related to molecular measures of leukocyte adhesion. This cohort was previously stratified into inflammatory subgroups based on circulating cytokine mRNAs; thus, gene expressions were analysed by diagnosis and by inflammatory subgroups. Previously measured plasma ICAM1 protein was elevated in "high inflammation" schizophrenia compared to both "high" and "low inflammation" controls while ICAM1 mRNA was unchanged in leukocytes. LFA1 mRNA was decreased and CR3 mRNA was increased in leukocytes from people with schizophrenia compared to controls. LFA1 mRNA levels were positively correlated with working memory and elevated soluble ICAM1 was negatively correlated with verbal memory in schizophrenia. Altogether, some of the cognitive deficits in schizophrenia may be associated with altered expression of molecules that regulate immune cell trafficking.
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Affiliation(s)
- Helen Q Cai
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, Australia; School of Psychiatry, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia
| | - Thomas W Weickert
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, Australia; School of Psychiatry, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia; Department of Neuroscience and Physiology, State University of New York Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, USA
| | - Vibeke S Catts
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, Australia; School of Psychiatry, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia
| | - Ryan Balzan
- Discipline of Psychiatry, University of Adelaide, Australia; College of Education, Psychology, and Social Work, Flinders University, Adelaide, Australia
| | - Cherrie Galletly
- Discipline of Psychiatry, University of Adelaide, Australia; Northern Adelaide Local Health Network, Adelaide, Australia; Ramsay Health Care (SA) Mental Health, Adelaide, Australia
| | - Dennis Liu
- Discipline of Psychiatry, University of Adelaide, Australia; Northern Adelaide Local Health Network, Adelaide, Australia
| | | | - Cynthia Shannon Weickert
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, Australia; School of Psychiatry, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia; Department of Neuroscience and Physiology, State University of New York Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, USA.
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Natural Catalytic IgGs Hydrolyzing Histones in Schizophrenia: Are They the Link between Humoral Immunity and Inflammation? Int J Mol Sci 2020; 21:ijms21197238. [PMID: 33008051 PMCID: PMC7582518 DOI: 10.3390/ijms21197238] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/06/2020] [Revised: 09/15/2020] [Accepted: 09/24/2020] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Schizophrenia is known to be accompanied not only with an imbalance in the neurotransmitter systems but also with immune system dysregulation and chronic low-grade inflammation. Extracellular histones and nucleosomes as damage-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs) trigger systemic inflammatory and toxic reactions by activating Toll-like receptors. In this work, we obtained the first evidence that polyclonal IgGs of patients with schizophrenia effectively hydrolyze five histones (H1, H2a, H2b, H3, and H4). Several strict criteria were used to demonstrate that histone-hydrolyzing activity is a property of the analyzed IgGs. The IgGs histone-hydrolyzing activity level, depending on the type of histone (H1–H4), was statistically significantly 6.1–20.2 times higher than that of conditionally healthy donors. The investigated biochemical properties (pH and metal ion dependences, kinetic characteristics) of these natural catalytic IgGs differed markedly from canonical proteases. It was previously established that the generation of natural catalytic antibodies is an early and clear sign of impaired humoral immunity. One cannot, however, exclude that histone-hydrolyzing antibodies may play a positive role in schizophrenia pathogenesis because histone removal from circulation or the inflamed area minimizes the inflammatory responses. Thus, it can be assumed that histone-hydrolyzing antibodies are a link between humoral immunity and inflammatory responses in schizophrenia.
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Purves-Tyson TD, Robinson K, Brown AM, Boerrigter D, Cai HQ, Weissleder C, Owens SJ, Rothmond DA, Shannon Weickert C. Increased Macrophages and C1qA, C3, C4 Transcripts in the Midbrain of People With Schizophrenia. Front Immunol 2020; 11:2002. [PMID: 33133060 PMCID: PMC7550636 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2020.02002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2020] [Accepted: 07/24/2020] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Increased cytokine and inflammatory-related transcripts are found in the ventral midbrain, a dopamine neuron-rich region associated with schizophrenia symptoms. In fact, half of schizophrenia cases can be defined as having a "high inflammatory/immune biotype." Recent studies implicate both complement and macrophages in cortical neuroinflammation in schizophrenia. Our aim was to determine whether measures of transcripts related to phagocytosis/macrophages (CD163, CD64, and FN1), or related to macrophage adhesion [intercellular adhesion molecule 1 (ICAM1)], or whether CD163+ cell density, as well as protein and/or gene expression of complement pathway activators (C1qA) and mediators (C3 or C4), are increased in the midbrain in schizophrenia, especially in those with a high inflammatory biotype. We investigated whether complement mRNA levels correlate with macrophage and/or microglia and/or astrocyte markers. We found CD163+ cells around blood vessels and in the parenchyma and increases in ICAM1, CD163, CD64, and FN1 mRNAs as well as increases in all complement transcripts in the midbrain of schizophrenia cases with high inflammation. While we found positive correlations between complement transcripts (C1qA and C3) and microglia or astrocyte markers across diagnostic and inflammatory subgroups, the only unique strong positive correlation was between CD163 and C1qA mRNAs in schizophrenia cases with high inflammation. Our study is the first to suggest that more circulating macrophages may be attracted to the midbrain in schizophrenia, and that increased macrophages are linked to increased complement pathway activation in tissue and may contribute to dopamine dysregulation in schizophrenia. Single-cell transcriptomic studies and mechanistic preclinical studies are required to test these possibilities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tertia D Purves-Tyson
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW, Australia.,School of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Kate Robinson
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Amelia M Brown
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Danny Boerrigter
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Helen Q Cai
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW, Australia.,School of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Christin Weissleder
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Samantha J Owens
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Debora A Rothmond
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Cynthia Shannon Weickert
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW, Australia.,School of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia.,Department of Neuroscience and Physiology, Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, United States
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49
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Inflammatory, cardio-metabolic and diabetic profiling of chronic schizophrenia. Eur Psychiatry 2020; 39:1-10. [DOI: 10.1016/j.eurpsy.2016.05.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/26/2016] [Revised: 05/08/2016] [Accepted: 05/16/2016] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
AbstractBackgroundThere is a growing interest in low-grade inflammatory and metabolic alterations in patients with chronic schizophrenia (SCH).MethodsInflammatory (tumor-necrosis factor-α [TNF-α], interferon-γ [IFN-γ], interleukins [IL-1α, IL-1β, IL-2, IL-4, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10], monocyte chemo-attractant protein-1 [MCP-1]) and growth factors (vascular endothelial growth factor [VEGF], epidermal growth factor [EGF]) were measured in blood serum samples of 105 SCH patients and 148 control subjects (CS). Simultaneously the clinical biomarkers (C-reactive protein [CRP], triglycerides [TG], low-density lipoprotein [LDL-c] and high-density lipoprotein [HDL-c] cholesterol, glycated hemoglobin [HbA1c]) were measured, and body mass index (BMI) was calculated for patients.ResultsSeveral cyto-/chemokines (IFN-γ, MCP-1, IL-2, IL-6, IL-8 and IL-10) were significantly (P < 0.0000001) elevated in SCH patients compared to CS. Odds ratios, obtained from logistic regression analyses, were significantly elevated for IL-2, IL-6, IL-10, INF-γ, and decreased for TNF-α in SCH group. Among the patients, higher IL-2, IL-6, INF-γ and lower MCP-1 levels as well as male gender were together significant (P < 0.000001) predictors of higher HbA1c levels, and TG/HDL-c parameter was associated with ratios of INF-γ/IL-10 (P = 0.004), and INF-γ/IL-4 (P = 0.049), HbA1c (P = 0.005), INF-γ (P = 0.009), as well as LDL-c (P = 0.02) levels.ConclusionsIL-2, IL-6, IL-10 and IFN-γ were the most significant SCH-related markers among the measured cytokines in our patient group. Furthermore, significant associations between pro-/anti-inflammatory imbalance and HbA1c as well as cardio-metabolic risk marker (TG/HDL-c) were observed, indicating higher risks of diabetes and cardiovascular diseases among SCH patients.
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50
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Xu R, Wu B, Liang J, He F, Gu W, Li K, Luo Y, Chen J, Gao Y, Wu Z, Wang Y, Zhou W, Wang M. Altered gut microbiota and mucosal immunity in patients with schizophrenia. Brain Behav Immun 2020; 85:120-127. [PMID: 31255682 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2019.06.039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 100] [Impact Index Per Article: 25.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2019] [Revised: 06/26/2019] [Accepted: 06/26/2019] [Indexed: 10/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Evidence shows that gut microbiota may play important roles in schizophrenia pathogenesis via the "gut-brain" axis, but the mechanisms remain unclear. Here, eighty-four patients with schizophrenia and 84 sex- and age-matched healthy controls were enrolled. Shotgun metagenomic sequencing and 16S rRNA sequencing were performed, and the gut microbiota-associated epitopes (MEs) were predicted, which, together with IgA content, were used to determine the gut microbiota composition associated with gut immune status. Patients with schizophrenia had significantly reduced gut microbiota richnesses compared with those of the healthy controls, and the gut microbiota compositions clearly distinguished the patients with schizophrenia from the healthy controls. Based on two-stage metagenomic-wide association studies, nineteen gut microbiota taxonomies were associated with schizophrenia, and the microbial dysbiosis (MD) index was calculated based on the abundance of differential taxonomies. We found that MD index was positively correlated with MEs diversity and gut IgA levels, and negatively correlated with gut microbiota richness. Glutamate synthase (GOGAT) was more active in the guts of patients with schizophrenia than in those of healthy controls, and high GOGAT activity was associated with altered gut microbiota taxonomies associated with gut IgA levels. Our results may imply a role of the microbiome in the etiology of schizophrenia and contribute to the development of microbiome targeted interventions for schizophrenia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruihuan Xu
- Clinical Laboratory, Longgang Distric Central Hospital, Affliated to Guangzhou University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shenzhen, Guangdong 518116, China.
| | - Bingbing Wu
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Birth Defects, The Molecular Medical Center, Pediatrics Research Institute, Children's Hospital of Fudan University, National Center for Children's Health, Shanghai 201102, China
| | - Jingwen Liang
- Clinical Laboratory, Longgang Distric Central Hospital, Affliated to Guangzhou University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shenzhen, Guangdong 518116, China
| | - Fusheng He
- Imunobio, Shenzhen, Guangdong 518001, China
| | - Wen Gu
- Shenzhen Key Laboratory for Psychological Healthcare, Shenzhen Institute of Mental Health, Shenzhen Kangning Hospital, Shenzhen Mental Health Center, Shenzhen 518020, China
| | - Kang Li
- Clinical Laboratory, Longgang Distric Central Hospital, Affliated to Guangzhou University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shenzhen, Guangdong 518116, China
| | - Yi Luo
- Clinical Laboratory, Longgang Distric Central Hospital, Affliated to Guangzhou University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shenzhen, Guangdong 518116, China
| | - Jianxia Chen
- Clinical Laboratory, Longgang Distric Central Hospital, Affliated to Guangzhou University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shenzhen, Guangdong 518116, China
| | - Yongbo Gao
- Clinical Laboratory, Longgang Distric Central Hospital, Affliated to Guangzhou University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Shenzhen, Guangdong 518116, China
| | - Ze Wu
- Clinical Laboratory, Longgang Hand Surgery Hospital of Shenzhen, 518116 Guangdong, China
| | - Yongqiang Wang
- Shenzhen Following Precision Medical Research Institute, Luohu Hospital Group, Shenzhen 518000, China
| | - Wenhao Zhou
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Birth Defects, Division of Neonatology, Children's Hospital of Fudan University, National Center for Children's Health, Shanghai 201102, China.
| | - Mingbang Wang
- Shanghai Key Laboratory of Birth Defects, Division of Neonatology, Children's Hospital of Fudan University, National Center for Children's Health, Shanghai 201102, China.
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