1
|
Mamah D, Patel A, Chen S, Wang Y, Wang Q. Diffusion Basis Spectrum Imaging of White Matter in Schizophrenia and Bipolar Disorder. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.07.07.602402. [PMID: 39005300 PMCID: PMC11245098 DOI: 10.1101/2024.07.07.602402] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/16/2024]
Abstract
Background Multiple studies point to the role of neuroinflammation in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia (SCZ), however, there have been few in vivo tools for imaging brain inflammation. Diffusion basis spectrum imaging (DBSI) is an advanced diffusion-based MRI method developed to quantitatively assess microstructural alternations relating to neuroinflammation, axonal fiber, and other white matter (WM) pathologies. Methods We acquired one-hour-long high-directional diffusion MRI data from young control (CON, n = 27), schizophrenia (SCZ, n = 21), and bipolar disorder (BPD, n = 21) participants aged 18-30. We applied Tract-based Spatial Statistics (TBSS) to allow whole-brain WM analyses and compare DBSI-derived isotropic and anisotropic diffusion measures between groups. Clinical relationships of DBSI metrics with clinical symptoms were assessed across SCZ and control participants. Results In SCZ participants, we found a generalized increase in DBSI-derived cellularity (a putative marker of neuroinflammation), a decrease in restricted fiber fraction (a putative marker of apparent axonal density), and an increase in extra-axonal water (a putative marker of vasogenic edema) across several WM tracts. There were only minimal WM abnormalities noted in BPD, mainly in regions of the corpus callosum (increase in DTI-derived RD and extra-axonal water). DBSI metrics showed significant partial correlations with psychosis and mood symptoms across groups. Conclusion Our findings suggest that SCZ involves generalized white matter neuroinflammation, decreased fiber density, and demyelination, which is not seen in bipolar disorder. Larger studies are needed to identify medication-related effects. DBSI metrics could help identify high-risk groups requiring early interventions to prevent the onset of psychosis and improve outcomes.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Mamah
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - Aakash Patel
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - ShingShiun Chen
- Department of Psychiatry, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - Yong Wang
- Departments of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri
- Department of Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri
- Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri
| | - Qing Wang
- Department of Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri
- Mechanical Engineering and Materials Science, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Debs SR, Rothmond DA, Zhu Y, Weickert CS, Purves-Tyson TD. Molecular evidence of altered stress responsivity related to neuroinflammation in the schizophrenia midbrain. J Psychiatr Res 2024; 177:118-128. [PMID: 39004003 DOI: 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2024.07.004] [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: 12/04/2023] [Revised: 06/12/2024] [Accepted: 07/02/2024] [Indexed: 07/16/2024]
Abstract
Stress and inflammation are risk factors for schizophrenia. Chronic psychosocial stress is associated with subcortical hyperdopaminergia, a core feature of schizophrenia. Hyperdopaminergia arises from midbrain neurons, leading us to hypothesise that changes in stress response pathways may occur in this region. To identify whether transcriptional changes in glucocorticoid and mineralocorticoid receptors (NR3C1/GR, NR3C2/MR) or other stress signalling molecules (FKBP4, FKBP5) exist in schizophrenia midbrain, we measured gene expression in the human brain (N = 56) using qRT-PCR. We assessed whether alterations in these mRNAs were related to previously identified high/low inflammatory status. We investigated relationships between stress-related transcripts themselves, and between FKBP5 mRNA, dopaminergic, and glial cell transcripts in diagnostic and inflammatory subgroups. Though unchanged by diagnosis, GR mRNA levels were reduced in high inflammatory compared to low inflammatory schizophrenia cases (p = 0.026). We found no effect of diagnosis or inflammation on MR mRNA. FKBP4 mRNA was decreased and FKBP5 mRNA was increased in schizophrenia (p < 0.05). FKBP5 changes occurred in high inflammatory (p < 0.001), whereas FKBP4 changes occurred in low inflammatory schizophrenia cases (p < 0.05). The decrease in mRNA encoding the main stress receptor (GR), as well as increased transcript levels of the stress-responsive negative regulator (FKBP5), may combine to blunt the midbrain response to stress in schizophrenia when neuroinflammation is present. Negative correlations between FKBP5 mRNA and dopaminergic transcripts in the low inflammatory subgroup suggest higher levels of FKBP5 mRNA may also attenuate dopaminergic neurotransmission in schizophrenia even when inflammation is absent. We report alterations in GR-mediated stress signalling in the midbrain in schizophrenia.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sophie R Debs
- Preclinical Neuropsychiatry Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Randwick, New South Wales, 2031, Australia; Discipline of Psychiatry & Mental Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, 2052, Australia
| | - Debora A Rothmond
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Randwick, New South Wales, 2031, Australia
| | - Yunting Zhu
- Department of Neuroscience & Physiology, Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, 13210, USA
| | - Cynthia Shannon Weickert
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Randwick, New South Wales, 2031, Australia; Discipline of Psychiatry & Mental Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, 2052, Australia; Department of Neuroscience & Physiology, Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, 13210, USA
| | - Tertia D Purves-Tyson
- Preclinical Neuropsychiatry Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Randwick, New South Wales, 2031, Australia; Discipline of Psychiatry & Mental Health, Faculty of Medicine, University of New South Wales, Sydney, New South Wales, 2052, Australia.
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
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.
Collapse
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
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Chen S, Tan Y, Tian L. Immunophenotypes in psychosis: is it a premature inflamm-aging disorder? Mol Psychiatry 2024:10.1038/s41380-024-02539-z. [PMID: 38532012 DOI: 10.1038/s41380-024-02539-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2022] [Revised: 03/15/2024] [Accepted: 03/18/2024] [Indexed: 03/28/2024]
Abstract
Immunopsychiatric field has rapidly accumulated evidence demonstrating the involvement of both innate and adaptive immune components in psychotic disorders such as schizophrenia. Nevertheless, researchers are facing dilemmas of discrepant findings of immunophenotypes both outside and inside the brains of psychotic patients, as discovered by recent meta-analyses. These discrepancies make interpretations and interrogations on their roles in psychosis remain vague and even controversial, regarding whether certain immune cells are more activated or less so, and whether they are causal or consequential, or beneficial or harmful for psychosis. Addressing these issues for psychosis is not at all trivial, as immune cells either outside or inside the brain are an enormously heterogeneous and plastic cell population, falling into a vast range of lineages and subgroups, and functioning differently and malleably in context-dependent manners. This review aims to overview the currently known immunophenotypes of patients with psychosis, and provocatively suggest the premature immune "burnout" or inflamm-aging initiated since organ development as a potential primary mechanism behind these immunophenotypes and the pathogenesis of psychotic disorders.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Song Chen
- Peking University HuiLongGuan Clinical Medical School, Beijing Huilongguan Hospital, Beijing, PR China
| | - Yunlong Tan
- Peking University HuiLongGuan Clinical Medical School, Beijing Huilongguan Hospital, Beijing, PR China
| | - Li Tian
- Department of Psychology and Logopedics, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland.
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
Luo C, Pi X, Zhang Q, Hu N, Xiao Y, Sweeney JA, Bishop JR, Gong Q, Xie D, Lui S. A subtype of schizophrenia patients with altered methylation level of genes related to immune cell activity. Psychol Med 2024:1-9. [PMID: 38505948 DOI: 10.1017/s0033291724000667] [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: 03/21/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Epigenetic changes are plausible molecular sources of clinical heterogeneity in schizophrenia. A subgroup of schizophrenia patients with elevated inflammatory or immune-dysregulation has been reported by previous studies. However, little is known about epigenetic changes in genes related to immune activation in never-treated first-episode patients with schizophrenia (FES) and its consistency with that in treated long-term ill (LTS) patients. METHODS In this study, epigenome-wide profiling with a DNA methylation array was applied using blood samples of both FES and LTS patients, as well as their corresponding healthy controls. Non-negative matrix factorization (NMF) and k -means clustering were performed to parse heterogeneity of schizophrenia, and the consistency of subtyping results from two cohorts. was tested. RESULTS This study identified a subtype of patients in FES participants (47.5%) that exhibited widespread methylation level alterations of genes enriched in immune cell activity and a significantly higher proportion of neutrophils. This clustering of FES patients was validated in LTS patients, with high correspondence in epigenetic and clinical features across two cohorts. CONCLUSIONS In summary, this study demonstrated a subtype of schizophrenia patients across both FES and LTS cohorts, defined by widespread alterations in methylation profile of genes related to immune function and distinguishing clinical features. This finding illustrates the promise of novel treatment strategies targeting immune dysregulation for a subpopulation of schizophrenia patients.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Chunyan Luo
- Huaxi MR Research Center (HMRRC), Department of Radiology, Functional and molecular imaging Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
- Psychoradiology Research Unit of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (2018RU011), West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
| | - Xuenan Pi
- Laboratory of Omics Technology and Bioinformatics, Frontiers Science Center for Disease-related Molecular Network, State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
| | - Qi Zhang
- Huaxi MR Research Center (HMRRC), Department of Radiology, Functional and molecular imaging Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
- Psychoradiology Research Unit of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (2018RU011), West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
| | - Na Hu
- Huaxi MR Research Center (HMRRC), Department of Radiology, Functional and molecular imaging Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
- Psychoradiology Research Unit of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (2018RU011), West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
| | - Yuan Xiao
- Huaxi MR Research Center (HMRRC), Department of Radiology, Functional and molecular imaging Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
- Psychoradiology Research Unit of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (2018RU011), West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
| | - John A Sweeney
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience, University of Cincinnati College of Medicine, Cincinnati OH 45219, USA
| | - Jeffrey R Bishop
- Department of Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology and Department of Psychiatry, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | - Qiyong Gong
- Huaxi MR Research Center (HMRRC), Department of Radiology, Functional and molecular imaging Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
- Psychoradiology Research Unit of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (2018RU011), West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
| | - Dan Xie
- Laboratory of Omics Technology and Bioinformatics, Frontiers Science Center for Disease-related Molecular Network, State Key Laboratory of Biotherapy, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
| | - Su Lui
- Huaxi MR Research Center (HMRRC), Department of Radiology, Functional and molecular imaging Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
- Psychoradiology Research Unit of the Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences (2018RU011), West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu, China
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Chen H, Wu L, Zhang Y, Ding W, Xiaofan Y. Steroid inhibited Serpina3n expression which was positively correlated with the degrees of spinal cord injury. Heliyon 2024; 10:e26649. [PMID: 38449654 PMCID: PMC10915347 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e26649] [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: 06/23/2023] [Revised: 01/23/2024] [Accepted: 02/16/2024] [Indexed: 03/08/2024] Open
Abstract
Aims The aim of our project was to identify proteins associated with the extent of spinal cord injury (SCI) and subsequent long-term neurological recovery. Methods Through proteomic analysis, we identified proteins that are differentially expressed specifically in the acute phase of injury. We analyzed the concentrations of differentially expressed proteins in serum and the injured spinal cord segment by ELISA. Results Serpina3n protein expression in the injured spinal cord segment was increased 101-fold at 12 h after severe SCI and 89-fold at 12 h after mild SCI, as determined by LC‒MS/MS. In the mild and severe SCI groups, serum Serpina3n levels began to increase at 12 h and peaked at 24 h. At 12 h, 24 h and 3 d after injury, serum Serpina3n protein levels were significantly correlated with the severity of injury (12 h: r = 0.6034, P = 0.008; 24 h: r = 0.7542, P = 0.0003; 3 d: r = 0.862, P < 0.001). Serum Serpina3n levels at 2 h, 24 h and 3 d post injury were significantly correlated with long-term neurological recovery at 28 d after SCI (2 h: r = -0.5781, P = 0.012; 24 h: r = -0.5912, P = 0.0098; 3 d: r = -0.7792, P < 0.0001). Methylprednisolone treatment would decrease the serum Serpina3n levels in mice with mild and severe SCI compared with those in placebo-group mice at 12 h and 24 h after SCI. The serum Serpina3n concentration in the severe SCI group was significantly reduced on the third day after steroid treatment. Conclusion Taken together, these data suggest that serpina3n may be a circulating biomarker of acute SCI and may be closely associated with injury severity and long-term motor function recovery.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Haihong Chen
- Orthopaedic Department, Minhang Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, 201199, China
| | - Liang Wu
- Orthopaedic Department, Minhang Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, 201199, China
| | - Yue Zhang
- Rehabilitation Department, Minhang Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, 201199, China
| | - Wang Ding
- Orthopaedic Department, Minhang Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, 201199, China
| | - Yin Xiaofan
- Orthopaedic Department, Minhang Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, 201199, China
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Nohesara S, Abdolmaleky HM, Thiagalingam S. Potential for New Therapeutic Approaches by Targeting Lactate and pH Mediated Epigenetic Dysregulation in Major Mental Diseases. Biomedicines 2024; 12:457. [PMID: 38398057 PMCID: PMC10887322 DOI: 10.3390/biomedicines12020457] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2024] [Revised: 02/15/2024] [Accepted: 02/16/2024] [Indexed: 02/25/2024] Open
Abstract
Multiple lines of evidence have shown that lactate-mediated pH alterations in the brains of patients with neuropsychiatric diseases such as schizophrenia (SCZ), Alzheimer's disease (AD) and autism may be attributed to mitochondrial dysfunction and changes in energy metabolism. While neuronal activity is associated with reduction in brain pH, astrocytes are responsible for rebalancing the pH to maintain the equilibrium. As lactate level is the main determinant of brain pH, neuronal activities are impacted by pH changes due to the binding of protons (H+) to various types of proteins, altering their structure and function in the neuronal and non-neuronal cells of the brain. Lactate and pH could affect diverse types of epigenetic modifications, including histone lactylation, which is linked to histone acetylation and DNA methylation. In this review, we discuss the importance of pH homeostasis in normal brain function, the role of lactate as an essential epigenetic regulatory molecule and its contributions to brain pH abnormalities in neuropsychiatric diseases, and shed light on lactate-based and pH-modulating therapies in neuropsychiatric diseases by targeting epigenetic modifications. In conclusion, we attempt to highlight the potentials and challenges of translating lactate-pH-modulating therapies to clinics for the treatment of neuropsychiatric diseases.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Shabnam Nohesara
- Department of Medicine (Biomedical Genetics), Boston University Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02118, USA;
| | - Hamid Mostafavi Abdolmaleky
- Department of Medicine (Biomedical Genetics), Boston University Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02118, USA;
- Nutrition/Metabolism Laboratory, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02215, USA
| | - Sam Thiagalingam
- Department of Medicine (Biomedical Genetics), Boston University Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02118, USA;
- Department of Pathology & Laboratory Medicine, Boston University Chobanian and Avedisian School of Medicine, Boston, MA 02118, USA
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Corley E, Patlola SR, Laighneach A, Corvin A, McManus R, Kenyon M, Kelly JP, Mckernan DP, King S, Hallahan B, Mcdonald C, Morris DW, Donohoe G. Genetic and inflammatory effects on childhood trauma and cognitive functioning in patients with schizophrenia and healthy participants. Brain Behav Immun 2024; 115:26-37. [PMID: 37748567 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2023.09.013] [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: 02/08/2023] [Revised: 09/12/2023] [Accepted: 09/13/2023] [Indexed: 09/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Recent studies have reported a negative association between exposure to childhood trauma, including physical neglect, and cognitive functioning in patients with schizophrenia. Childhood trauma has been found to influence immune functioning, which may contribute to the risk of schizophrenia and cognitive symptoms of the disorder. In this study, we aimed to test the hypothesis that physical neglect is associated with cognitive ability, and that this association is mediated by a combined latent measure of inflammatory response, and moderated by higher genetic risk for schizophrenia. The study included 279 Irish participants, comprising 102 patients and 177 healthy participants. Structural equation modelling was used to perform mediation and moderation analyses. Inflammatory response was measured via basal plasma levels of IL-6, TNF-α, and CRP, and cognitive performance was assessed across three domains: full-scale IQ, logical memory, and the emotion recognition task. Genetic variation for schizophrenia was estimated using a genome-wide polygenic score based on genome-wide association study summary statistics. The results showed that inflammatory response mediated the association between physical neglect and all measures of cognitive functioning, and explained considerably more variance than any of the inflammatory markers alone. Furthermore, genetic risk for schizophrenia was observed to moderate the direct pathway between physical neglect and measures of non-social cognitive functioning in both patient and healthy participants. However, genetic risk did not moderate the mediated pathway associated with inflammatory response. Therefore, we conclude that the mediating role of inflammatory response and the moderating role of higher genetic risk may independently influence the association between adverse early life experiences and cognitive function in patients and healthy participants.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Emma Corley
- School of Psychology, University of Galway, Ireland; Centre for Neuroimaging, Cognition, and Genomics (NICOG), University of Galway, Ireland
| | - Saahithh Redddi Patlola
- Centre for Neuroimaging, Cognition, and Genomics (NICOG), University of Galway, Ireland; Pharmacology & Therapeutics and Galway Neuroscience Centre, University of Galway, Ireland
| | - Aodán Laighneach
- Centre for Neuroimaging, Cognition, and Genomics (NICOG), University of Galway, Ireland; School of Biological and Chemical Sciences, University of Galway, Ireland
| | - Aiden Corvin
- Neuropsychiatric Genetics Research Group, Department of Psychiatry, Institute of Molecular Medicine, Trinity College Dublin, Ireland
| | - Ross McManus
- Neuropsychiatric Genetics Research Group, Department of Psychiatry, Institute of Molecular Medicine, Trinity College Dublin, Ireland
| | - Marcus Kenyon
- Neuropsychiatric Genetics Research Group, Department of Psychiatry, Institute of Molecular Medicine, Trinity College Dublin, Ireland
| | - John P Kelly
- Pharmacology & Therapeutics and Galway Neuroscience Centre, University of Galway, Ireland
| | - Declan P Mckernan
- Pharmacology & Therapeutics and Galway Neuroscience Centre, University of Galway, Ireland
| | - Sinead King
- School of Psychology, University of Galway, Ireland; Centre for Neuroimaging, Cognition, and Genomics (NICOG), University of Galway, Ireland
| | - Brian Hallahan
- Department of Psychiatry, Clinical Science Institute, University of Galway, Ireland
| | - Colm Mcdonald
- Department of Psychiatry, Clinical Science Institute, University of Galway, Ireland
| | - Derek W Morris
- Centre for Neuroimaging, Cognition, and Genomics (NICOG), University of Galway, Ireland; School of Biological and Chemical Sciences, University of Galway, Ireland
| | - Gary Donohoe
- School of Psychology, University of Galway, Ireland; Centre for Neuroimaging, Cognition, and Genomics (NICOG), University of Galway, Ireland.
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Zheng H, Webster MJ, Weickert CS, Beasley CL, Paulus MP, Yolken RH, Savitz J. Cytomegalovirus antibodies are associated with mood disorders, suicide, markers of neuroinflammation, and microglia activation in postmortem brain samples. Mol Psychiatry 2023; 28:5282-5292. [PMID: 37391529 PMCID: PMC10756933 DOI: 10.1038/s41380-023-02162-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/11/2022] [Revised: 06/13/2023] [Accepted: 06/22/2023] [Indexed: 07/02/2023]
Abstract
Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is a common, neurotrophic herpesvirus that can be reactivated by inflammation and cause central nervous system disease. We hypothesize that CMV may contribute to the neuroinflammation that underlies some psychiatric disorders by (1) exacerbating inflammation through the induction of anti-viral immune responses, and (2) translating peripheral inflammation into neuroinflammation. We investigated whether the presence of anti-CMV antibodies in blood were associated with mental illness, suicide, neuroinflammation, and microglial density in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) in postmortem samples. Data (n = 114 with schizophrenia; n = 78 with bipolar disorder; n = 87 with depression; n = 85 controls) were obtained from the Stanley Medical Research Institute. DLPFC gene expression data from a subset of 82 samples were categorized into "high" (n = 30), and "low" (n = 52) inflammation groups based on a recursive two-step cluster analysis using expression data for four inflammation-related genes. Measurements of the ratio of non-ramified to ramified microglia, a proxy of microglial activation, were available for a subset of 49 samples. All analyses controlled for age, sex, and ethnicity, as well as postmortem interval, and pH for gene expression and microglial outcomes. CMV seropositivity significantly increased the odds of a mood disorder diagnosis (bipolar disorder: OR = 2.45; major depression: OR = 3.70) and among the psychiatric samples, of suicide (OR = 2.09). Samples in the upper tercile of anti-CMV antibody titers were more likely to be members of the "high" inflammation group (OR = 4.41, an effect driven by schizophrenia and bipolar disorder samples). CMV positive samples also showed an increased ratio of non-ramified to ramified microglia in layer I of the DLPFC (Cohen's d = 0.81) as well as a non-significant increase in this ratio for the DLPFC as a whole (d = 0.56). The results raise the possibility that the reactivation of CMV contributes to the neuroinflammation that underlies some cases of psychiatric disorders.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Haixia Zheng
- Laureate Institute for Brain Research, Tulsa, OK, USA.
- Oxley College of Health Sciences, The University of Tulsa, Tulsa, OK, USA.
| | - Maree J Webster
- Laboratory of Brain Research, Stanley Medical Research Institute, 9800 Medical Center Drive, Rockville, MD, USA
| | - Cynthia Shannon Weickert
- Department of Neuroscience & Physiology, Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, 13210, USA
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Randwick, NSW, 2031, Australia
| | - Clare L Beasley
- Department of Psychiatry, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada
| | - Martin P Paulus
- Laureate Institute for Brain Research, Tulsa, OK, USA
- Oxley College of Health Sciences, The University of Tulsa, Tulsa, OK, USA
| | - Robert H Yolken
- Stanley Division of Developmental Neurovirology, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Jonathan Savitz
- Laureate Institute for Brain Research, Tulsa, OK, USA
- Oxley College of Health Sciences, The University of Tulsa, Tulsa, OK, USA
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Ayilara GO, Owoyele BV. Neuroinflammation and microglial expression in brains of social-isolation rearing model of schizophrenia. IBRO Neurosci Rep 2023; 15:31-41. [PMID: 37359498 PMCID: PMC10285239 DOI: 10.1016/j.ibneur.2023.05.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2022] [Revised: 05/18/2023] [Accepted: 05/30/2023] [Indexed: 06/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Schizophrenia is a psychiatric disorder with a global prevalence of approximately 0.45%. It is considered a mental illness, with negative symptoms, positive symptoms, and cognitive dysfunction. The outcomes of studies on the role of microglia and neuroinflammation have been conflicting. In addition, there is a poor understanding of the sex differences in microglial expression and neuroinflammation markers in the prefrontal cortex, hippocampus, and nucleus accumbens. Understanding the exact roles of neuroinflammation may guide the development of efficient therapeutic drugs that can address the negative, positive, and cognitive symptoms of the disease. We examined the effect of social isolation rearing on schizophrenia-related behaviours in male and female BALB/c mice. The social-isolation rearing protocol started on post-natal day (PND) 21, lasting for 35 days. Animals were assigned to four cohorts, consisting of five animals per group. On PND 56, animals were assessed for behavioural changes. We used enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays to investigate the expression of nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB), tumour necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), and Interleukin-1β (IL-1β) in the hippocampus, nucleus accumbens, and prefrontal cortex. Immunohistochemistry was used to assess the expression of microglia in the three brain regions. Our study showed that isolation rearing led to increasing locomotion, heightened anxiety, depression, and a reduced percentage of prepulse inhibition. There was a significant increase (p < 0.05) in anxiety in the female isolation mice compared to male isolation mice. Furthermore, isolation rearing significantly increased microglia count (p < 0.05) in the hippocampus, nucleus accumbens, and prefrontal cortex, only in the male group. There was microglial hyper-activation as evident in the downregulation of CX3CR1 in both male and female social-isolation groups. Male social-isolation mice showed a significant increase (p < 0.05) in neuroinflammation markers only in the nucleus accumbens while the female social-isolation mice showed a significant increase (p < 0.05) in neuroinflammation markers in both the nucleus accumbens and hippocampus. The study showed that therapeutic interventions aimed at modulating CX3CR1 activity and reducing inflammation may be beneficial for patients with schizophrenia.
Collapse
|
11
|
Lizano P, Kiely C, Mijalkov M, Meda SA, Keedy SK, Hoang D, Zeng V, Lutz O, Pereira JB, Ivleva EI, Volpe G, Xu Y, Lee AM, Rubin LH, Kristian Hill S, Clementz BA, Tamminga CA, Pearlson GD, Sweeney JA, Gershon ES, Keshavan MS, Bishop JR. Peripheral inflammatory subgroup differences in anterior Default Mode network and multiplex functional network topology are associated with cognition in psychosis. Brain Behav Immun 2023; 114:3-15. [PMID: 37506949 PMCID: PMC10592140 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2023.07.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2023] [Revised: 07/17/2023] [Accepted: 07/22/2023] [Indexed: 07/30/2023] Open
Abstract
INTRODUCTION High-inflammation subgroups of patients with psychosis demonstrate cognitive deficits and neuroanatomical alterations. Systemic inflammation assessed using IL-6 and C-reactive protein may alter functional connectivity within and between resting-state networks, but the cognitive and clinical implications of these alterations remain unknown. We aim to determine the relationships of elevated peripheral inflammation subgroups with resting-state functional networks and cognition in psychosis spectrum disorders. METHODS Serum and resting-state fMRI were collected from psychosis probands (schizophrenia, schizoaffective, psychotic bipolar disorder) and healthy controls (HC) from the B-SNIP1 (Chicago site) study who were stratified into inflammatory subgroups based on factor and cluster analyses of 13 cytokines (HC Low n = 32, Proband Low n = 65, Proband High n = 29). Nine resting-state networks derived from independent component analysis were used to assess functional and multilayer connectivity. Inter-network connectivity was measured using Fisher z-transformation of correlation coefficients. Network organization was assessed by investigating networks of positive and negative connections separately, as well as investigating multilayer networks using both positive and negative connections. Cognition was assessed using the Brief Assessment of Cognition in Schizophrenia. Linear regressions, Spearman correlations, permutations tests and multiple comparison corrections were used for analyses in R. RESULTS Anterior default mode network (DMNa) connectivity was significantly reduced in the Proband High compared to Proband Low (Cohen's d = -0.74, p = 0.002) and HC Low (d = -0.85, p = 0.0008) groups. Inter-network connectivity between the DMNa and the right-frontoparietal networks was lower in Proband High compared to Proband Low (d = -0.66, p = 0.004) group. Compared to Proband Low, the Proband High group had lower negative (d = 0.54, p = 0.021) and positive network (d = 0.49, p = 0.042) clustering coefficient, and lower multiplex network participation coefficient (d = -0.57, p = 0.014). Network findings in high inflammation subgroups correlate with worse verbal fluency, verbal memory, symbol coding, and overall cognition. CONCLUSION These results expand on our understanding of the potential effects of peripheral inflammatory signatures and/or subgroups on network dysfunction in psychosis and how they relate to worse cognitive performance. Additionally, the novel multiplex approach taken in this study demonstrated how inflammation may disrupt the brain's ability to maintain healthy co-activation patterns between the resting-state networks while inhibiting certain connections between them.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Paulo Lizano
- Department of Psychiatry, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Division of Translational Neuroscience, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA.
| | - Chelsea Kiely
- Department of Psychiatry, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Mite Mijalkov
- Neuro Division, Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Shashwath A Meda
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, USA
| | - Sarah K Keedy
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Dung Hoang
- Department of Psychiatry, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Victor Zeng
- Department of Psychiatry, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Olivia Lutz
- Department of Psychiatry, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Joana B Pereira
- Neuro Division, Department of Clinical Neurosciences, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden; Clinical Memory Research Unit, Department of Clinical Sciences, Lund University, Sweden
| | - Elena I Ivleva
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX
| | - Giovanni Volpe
- Physics Department, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Yanxun Xu
- Department of Applied Mathematics and Statistics, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Adam M Lee
- Department of Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology and Psychiatry, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | - Leah H Rubin
- Department of Neurology, Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Molecular and Comparative Pathobiology, and Epidemiology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - S Kristian Hill
- Department of Psychology, Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, North Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Brett A Clementz
- Department of Psychology, University of Georgia, Athens, Georgia
| | - Carol A Tamminga
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX
| | | | - John A Sweeney
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Cincinnati Medical Center, Cincinnati, OH, USA
| | - Elliot S Gershon
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neurosciences, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA
| | - Matcheri S Keshavan
- Department of Psychiatry, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Jeffrey R Bishop
- Department of Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology and Psychiatry, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| |
Collapse
|
12
|
Wang Y, Fang X, Wang G, Tang W, Liu S, Yang Y, Chen J, Ling Y, Zhou C, Zhang X, Zhang C, Su KP. The association between inflammation and kynurenine pathway metabolites in electroconvulsive therapy for schizophrenia: Implications for clinical efficacy. Brain Behav Immun 2023; 113:1-11. [PMID: 37353059 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2023.06.016] [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: 04/13/2023] [Revised: 05/30/2023] [Accepted: 06/15/2023] [Indexed: 06/25/2023] Open
Abstract
The kynurenine pathway (KP) of tryptophan has been implicated in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia and its interaction with the immune system has been suggested to play a role. In this study, 28 schizophrenia patients and 25 healthy controls were recruited and divided into different inflammatory subgroups using a two-step recursive clustering analysis. Cytokine gene expression and plasma KP metabolites were measured before, during and after treatment. Our findings indicated that schizophrenia patients had lower levels of Tryptophan (TRP), N-formylkynurenine (NFK), xanthinic acid (XA), quinolinic acid (QA), kynurenic acid (KYNA), KYNA/KYN and QA/KYNA, but higher levels of IL-18 mRNA, KYN/TRP compared to healthy controls (all p < 0.05). After electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), patients with low inflammation achieved better clinical improvement (PANSS scores) compared to those with high inflammation (F = 5.672, P = 0.025), especially in negative symptoms (F = 6.382, P = 0.018, η2 = 0.197). While IL-18 mRNA (F = 32.910, P < 0.0001) was significantly decreased following ECT, the KYN/TRP (F = 3.455, p = 0.047) and KYNA/TRP (F = 4.264, P = 0.026) only significantly decreased in patients with low inflammation. Correlation analyses revealed that baseline IL-18 gene expression significantly correlated with pre- (r = 0.537, p = 0.008) and post-KYNA/TRP (r = 0.443, p = 0.034), post-KYN/TRP (r = 0.510, p = 0.013), and post-negative symptoms (r = 0.525, p = 0.010). Moreover, baseline TRP (r = -0.438, p = 0.037) and XA (r = -0.516, p = 0.012) were negatively correlated with baseline PANSS, while post-KYN (r = -0.475, p = 0.022), 2-AA (r = -0.447, p = 0.032) and KYN/TRP (r = -0.566, p = 0.005) were negatively correlated with Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) following ECT. Overall, these findings suggested that the association between inflammation and kynurenine pathway plays an essential role in mechanism of ECT for schizophrenia and that the regulation of ECT on KP is influenced by inflammatory characteristics, which may relate to clinical efficacy in schizophrenia.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yu Wang
- Department of Geriatric Psychiatry, The Affiliated Brain Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China
| | - Xinyu Fang
- Department of Geriatric Psychiatry, The Affiliated Brain Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China
| | - Guangfa Wang
- The Affiliated Xuzhou Oriental Hospital of Xuzhou Medical University, Xuzhou, Jiangsu 221004, China
| | - Wei Tang
- The Affiliated Wenzhou Kangning Hospital, Wenzhou Medical University, China
| | - Shasha Liu
- The Affiliated Xuzhou Oriental Hospital of Xuzhou Medical University, Xuzhou, Jiangsu 221004, China
| | - Yujing Yang
- The Affiliated Xuzhou Oriental Hospital of Xuzhou Medical University, Xuzhou, Jiangsu 221004, China
| | - Jin Chen
- Department of Geriatric Psychiatry, The Affiliated Brain Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China; The Affiliated Xuzhou Oriental Hospital of Xuzhou Medical University, Xuzhou, Jiangsu 221004, China
| | - Yuru Ling
- Department of Geriatric Psychiatry, The Affiliated Brain Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China
| | - Chao Zhou
- Department of Geriatric Psychiatry, The Affiliated Brain Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China
| | - Xiangrong Zhang
- Department of Geriatric Psychiatry, The Affiliated Brain Hospital of Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, Jiangsu, China; The Affiliated Xuzhou Oriental Hospital of Xuzhou Medical University, Xuzhou, Jiangsu 221004, China.
| | - Caiyi Zhang
- The Affiliated Xuzhou Oriental Hospital of Xuzhou Medical University, Xuzhou, Jiangsu 221004, China.
| | - Kuan-Pin Su
- College of Medicine, China Medical University, Taichung, Taiwan; An-Nan Hospital, China Medical University, Tainan, Taiwan.
| |
Collapse
|
13
|
Herniman SE, Wood SJ, Khandaker G, Dazzan P, Pariante CM, Barnes NM, Krynicki CR, Nikkheslat N, Vincent RC, Roberts A, Giordano A, Watson A, Suckling J, Barnes TRE, Husain N, Jones PB, Joyce E, Lawrie SM, Lewis S, Deakin B, Upthegrove R. Network analysis of inflammation and symptoms in recent onset schizophrenia and the influence of minocycline during a clinical trial. Transl Psychiatry 2023; 13:297. [PMID: 37723153 PMCID: PMC10507090 DOI: 10.1038/s41398-023-02570-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/11/2023] [Revised: 05/30/2023] [Accepted: 07/24/2023] [Indexed: 09/20/2023] Open
Abstract
Attempts to delineate an immune subtype of schizophrenia have not yet led to the clear identification of potential treatment targets. An unbiased informatic approach at the level of individual immune cytokines and symptoms may reveal organisational structures underlying heterogeneity in schizophrenia, and potential for future therapies. The aim was to determine the network and relative influence of pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines on depressive, positive, and negative symptoms. We further aimed to determine the effect of exposure to minocycline or placebo for 6 months on cytokine-symptom network connectivity and structure. Network analysis was applied to baseline and 6-month data from the large multi-center BeneMin trial of minocycline (N = 207) in schizophrenia. Pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-6, TNF-α, and IFN-γ had the greatest influence in the inflammatory network and were associated with depressive symptoms and suspiciousness at baseline. At 6 months, the placebo group network connectivity was 57% stronger than the minocycline group, due to significantly greater influence of TNF-α, early wakening, and pathological guilt. IL-6 and its downstream impact on TNF-α, and IFN-γ, could offer novel targets for treatment if offered at the relevant phenotypic profile including those with depression. Future targeted experimental studies of immune-based therapies are now needed.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sarah E Herniman
- Orygen, Melbourne, Australia.
- Centre of Youth Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia.
- Melbourne School of Psychological Sciences, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia.
| | - Stephen J Wood
- Orygen, Melbourne, Australia
- Centre of Youth Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia
- Institute for Mental Health and Centre for Human Brain Health, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
| | - Golam Khandaker
- MRC Integrative Epidemiology Unit, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
- Centre for Academic Mental Health, Population Health Sciences, Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge School of Clinical Medicine, Cambridge, UK
- Cambridgeshire and Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust, Cambridge, UK
- Avon and Wiltshire Mental Health Partnership NHS Trust, Bristol, UK
| | - Paola Dazzan
- Department of Psychological Medicine, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, London, UK
| | - Carmine M Pariante
- Stress, Psychiatry and Immunology Lab & Perinatal Psychiatry, The Maurice Wohl Clinical Neuroscience Institute, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Nicholas M Barnes
- Institute of Clinical Sciences, College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
| | - Carl R Krynicki
- Institute for Mental Health and Centre for Human Brain Health, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
| | - Naghmeh Nikkheslat
- Stress, Psychiatry and Immunology Lab & Perinatal Psychiatry, The Maurice Wohl Clinical Neuroscience Institute, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Rachel C Vincent
- Institute of Clinical Sciences, College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
| | - Alex Roberts
- Institute of Clinical Sciences, College of Medical and Dental Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
| | - Annalisa Giordano
- Department of Psychological Medicine, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, London, UK
| | - Andrew Watson
- The Department of Clinical and Motor Neurosciences, UCL Institute of Neurology, London, UK
| | - John Suckling
- Brain Mapping Unit, Department of Psychiatry, Herchel Smith Building for Brain and Mind Sciences, Cambridge, UK
- Cambridgeshire & Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust, Cambridge, UK
| | | | - Nusrat Husain
- Lancashire & South Cumbria NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK
- Division of Psychology and Mental Health, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK
| | - Peter B Jones
- Brain Mapping Unit, Department of Psychiatry, Herchel Smith Building for Brain and Mind Sciences, Cambridge, UK
- Cambridgeshire & Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust, Cambridge, UK
| | - Eileen Joyce
- The Department of Clinical and Motor Neurosciences, UCL Institute of Neurology, London, UK
| | - Stephen M Lawrie
- Division of Psychiatry, Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, UK
| | - Shôn Lewis
- Division of Psychology and Mental Health, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK
| | - Bill Deakin
- Division of Psychology and Mental Health, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK
- Early Interventions Service, Birmingham Womens and Children's NHS Foundation Trust, Birmingham, UK
| | - Rachel Upthegrove
- Institute for Mental Health and Centre for Human Brain Health, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, UK
- Early Interventions Service, Birmingham Womens and Children's NHS Foundation Trust, Birmingham, UK
| |
Collapse
|
14
|
Shishido R, Kunii Y, Hino M, Izumi R, Nagaoka A, Hayashi H, Kakita A, Tomita H, Yabe H. Evidence for increased DNA damage repair in the postmortem brain of the high stress-response group of schizophrenia. Front Psychiatry 2023; 14:1183696. [PMID: 37674553 PMCID: PMC10478254 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1183696] [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: 03/10/2023] [Accepted: 06/12/2023] [Indexed: 09/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Schizophrenia (SZ) is a disorder diagnosed by specific symptoms and duration and is highly heterogeneous, clinically and pathologically. Although there are an increasing number of studies on the association between genetic and environmental factors in the development of SZ, the actual distribution of the population with different levels of influence of these factors has not yet been fully elucidated. In this study, we focused on stress as an environmental factor and stratified SZ based on the expression levels of stress-responsive molecules in the postmortem prefrontal cortex. Methods We selected the following stress-responsive molecules: interleukin (IL) -1β, IL-6, IL-10, tumor necrosis factor-α, interferon-γ, glucocorticoid receptor, brain-derived neurotrophic factor, synaptophysin, S100 calcium-binding protein B, superoxide dismutase, postsynaptic density protein 95, synuclein, apolipoprotein A1 (ApoA1), ApoA2, and solute carrier family 6 member 4. We performed RNA sequencing in the prefrontal gray matter of 25 SZ cases and 21 healthy controls and conducted a hierarchical cluster analysis of SZ based on the gene expression levels of stress-responsive molecules, which yielded two clusters. After assessing the validity of the clusters, they were designated as the high stress-response SZ group and the low stress-response SZ group, respectively. Ingenuity Pathway Analysis of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between clusters was performed, and Terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase-mediated dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL) staining was conducted on four cases each in the high and low stress-response SZ groups to validate DNA damage. Results We found higher prevalence of family history of SZ in the low stress-response SZ group (0/3 vs. 5/4, p = 0.04). Pathway analysis of DEGs between clusters showed the highest enrichment for DNA double-strand break repair. TUNEL staining showed a trend toward a lower percentage of TUNEL-positive cells in the high stress-response SZ group. Conclusion Our results suggest that there are subgroups of SZ with different degrees of stress impact. Furthermore, the pathophysiology of these subgroups may be associated with DNA damage repair. These results provide new insights into the interactions and heterogeneity between genetic and environmental factors.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Risa Shishido
- Department of Neuropsychiatry, School of Medicine, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan
| | - Yasuto Kunii
- Department of Neuropsychiatry, School of Medicine, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan
- Department of Disaster Psychiatry, International Research Institute of Disaster Science, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan
| | - Mizuki Hino
- Department of Neuropsychiatry, School of Medicine, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan
- Department of Disaster Psychiatry, International Research Institute of Disaster Science, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan
| | - Ryuta Izumi
- Department of Neuropsychiatry, School of Medicine, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan
| | - Atsuko Nagaoka
- Department of Neuropsychiatry, School of Medicine, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan
| | - Hideki Hayashi
- Department of Pathology, Brain Research Institute, Niigata University, Niigata, Japan
| | - Akiyoshi Kakita
- Department of Pathology, Brain Research Institute, Niigata University, Niigata, Japan
| | - Hiroaki Tomita
- Department of Disaster Psychiatry, International Research Institute of Disaster Science, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan
| | - Hirooki Yabe
- Department of Neuropsychiatry, School of Medicine, Fukushima Medical University, Fukushima, Japan
| |
Collapse
|
15
|
Sager REH, Walker AK, Middleton FA, Robinson K, Webster MJ, Gentile K, Wong ML, Shannon Weickert C. Changes in cytokine and cytokine receptor levels during postnatal development of the human dorsolateral prefrontal cortex. Brain Behav Immun 2023; 111:186-201. [PMID: 36958512 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2023.03.015] [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: 09/30/2022] [Revised: 03/09/2023] [Accepted: 03/16/2023] [Indexed: 03/25/2023] Open
Abstract
In addition to their traditional roles in immune cell communication, cytokines regulate brain development. Cytokines are known to influence neural cell generation, differentiation, maturation, and survival. However, most work on the role of cytokines in brain development investigates rodents or focuses on prenatal events. Here, we investigate how mRNA and protein levels of key cytokines and cytokine receptors change during postnatal development of the human prefrontal cortex. We find that most cytokine transcripts investigated (IL1B, IL18, IL6, TNF, IL13) are lowest at birth and increase between 1.5 and 5 years old. After 5 years old, transcriptional patterns proceeded in one of two directions: decreased expression in teens and young adults (IL1B, p = 0.002; and IL18, p = 0.004) or increased mean expression with maturation, particularly in teenagers (IL6, p = 0.004; TNF, p = 0.002; IL13, p < 0.001). In contrast, cytokine proteins tended to remain elevated after peaking significantly around 3 years of age (IL1B, p = 0.012; IL18, p = 0.026; IL6, p = 0.039; TNF, p < 0.001), with TNF protein being highest in teenagers. An mRNA-only analysis of cytokine receptor transcripts found that early developmental increases in cytokines were paralleled by increases in their ligand-binding receptor subunits, such as IL1R1 (p = 0.033) and IL6R (p < 0.001) transcripts. In contrast, cytokine receptor-associated signaling subunits, IL1RAP and IL6ST, did not change significantly between age groups. Of the two TNF receptors, the 'pro-death' TNFRSF1A and 'pro-survival' TNFRSF1B, only TNFRSF1B was significantly changed (p = 0.028), increasing first in toddlers and again in young adults. Finally, the cytokine inhibitor, IL13, was elevated first in toddlers (p = 0.006) and again in young adults (p = 0.053). While the mean expression of interleukin-1 receptor antagonist (IL1RN) was highest in toddlers, this increase was not statistically significant. The fluctuations in cytokine expression reported here support a role for increases in specific cytokines at two different stages of human cortical development. The first is during the toddler/preschool period (IL1B, IL18, and IL13), and the other occurs at adolescence/young adult maturation (IL6, TNF and IL13).
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Rachel E H Sager
- Department of Neuroscience and Physiology, SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, USA
| | - Adam K Walker
- Laboratory of Immunopsychiatry, Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW, Australia; Discipline of Psychiatry and Mental Health, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia; Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Science, Monash University, Parkville, VIC, Australia
| | - Frank A Middleton
- Department of Neuroscience and Physiology, SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, USA
| | - Kate Robinson
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | | | - Karen Gentile
- Department of Neuroscience and Physiology, SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, USA
| | - Ma-Li Wong
- Department of Neuroscience and Physiology, SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, USA; Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, USA
| | - Cynthia Shannon Weickert
- Department of Neuroscience and Physiology, SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, USA; Discipline of Psychiatry and Mental Health, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia; Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
| |
Collapse
|
16
|
Zhu Y, Webster MJ, Walker AK, Massa P, Middleton FA, Weickert CS. Increased prefrontal cortical cells positive for macrophage/microglial marker CD163 along blood vessels characterizes a neuropathology of neuroinflammatory schizophrenia. Brain Behav Immun 2023; 111:46-60. [PMID: 36972743 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2023.03.018] [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: 11/30/2022] [Revised: 03/01/2023] [Accepted: 03/23/2023] [Indexed: 03/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Transcript levels of cytokines and SERPINA3 have been used to define a substantial subset (40%) of individuals with schizophrenia with elevated inflammation and worse neuropathology in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC). In this study, we tested if inflammatory proteins are likewise related to high and low inflammatory states in the human DLFPC in people with schizophrenia and controls. Levels of inflammatory cytokines (IL6, IL1β, IL18, IL8) and a macrophage marker (CD163 protein) were measured in brains obtained from the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) (N = 92). First, we tested for diagnostic differences in protein levels overall, then we determined the percentage of individuals that could be defined as "high" inflammation using protein levels. IL-18 was the only cytokine to show increased expression in schizophrenia compared to controls overall. Interestingly, two-step recursive clustering analysis showed that IL6, IL18, and CD163 protein levels could be used as predictors of "high and low" inflammatory subgroups. By this model, a significantly greater proportion of schizophrenia cases (18/32; 56.25%; SCZ) were identified as belonging to the high inflammatory (HI) subgroup compared to control cases (18/60; 30%; CTRL) [χ2(1) = 6.038, p = 0.014]. When comparing across inflammatory subgroups, IL6, IL1β, IL18, IL8, and CD163 protein levels were elevated in both SCZ-HI and CTRL-HI compared to both low inflammatory subgroups (all p < 0.05). Surprisingly, TNFα levels were significantly decreased (-32.2%) in schizophrenia compared to controls (p < 0.001), and were most diminished in the SCZ-HI subgroup compared to both CTRL-LI and CTRL-HI subgroups (p < 0.05). Next, we asked if the anatomical distribution and density of CD163+ macrophages differed in those with schizophrenia and high inflammation status. Macrophages were localized to perivascular sites and found surrounding small, medium and large blood vessels in both gray matter and white matter, with macrophage density highest at the pial surface in all schizophrenia cases examined. A higher density of CD163+ macrophages, that were also larger and more darkly stained, was found in the SCZ-HI subgroup (+154% p < 0.05). We also confirmed the rare existence of parenchymal CD163+ macrophages in both high inflammation subgroups (schizophrenia and controls). Brain CD163+ cell density around blood vessels positively correlated with CD163 protein levels. In conclusion, we find a link between elevated interleukin cytokine protein levels, decreased TNFα protein levels, and elevated CD163+ macrophage densities especially along small blood vessels in those with neuroinflammatory schizophrenia.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yunting Zhu
- Department of Neuroscience & Physiology, Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY 13210, USA
| | | | - Adam K Walker
- School of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia; Laboratory of Immunopsychiatry, Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW, Australia; Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Science, Monash University, Parkville, Vic, Australia
| | - Paul Massa
- Department of Neurology, Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY 13210, USA; Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY 13210, USA
| | - Frank A Middleton
- Department of Neuroscience & Physiology, Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY 13210, USA
| | - Cynthia Shannon Weickert
- Department of Neuroscience & Physiology, Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY 13210, USA; School of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia; Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Randwick, NSW 2031, Australia.
| |
Collapse
|
17
|
Drljača J, Milošević N, Milanović M, Abenavoli L, Milić N. When the microbiome helps the brain-current evidence. CNS Neurosci Ther 2023; 29 Suppl 1:43-58. [PMID: 36601680 PMCID: PMC10314113 DOI: 10.1111/cns.14076] [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: 08/22/2022] [Revised: 12/05/2022] [Accepted: 12/17/2022] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
The gut microbiota-brain axis has been recognized as a network of connections that provides communication between the gut microflora and both central and autonomic nervous system. The gut microbiota alteration has been targeted for therapy in various neurodegenerative and psychiatric disbalances. Psychobiotics are probiotics that contribute beneficially to the brain function and the host mental health as a result of an interaction with the commensal gut bacteria, although their mechanism of action has not been completely revealed. In this state-of-art review, the findings about the potential therapeutic effects of the psychobiotics alone or in combination with conventional medicine in the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease and Parkinson's disease, as well as in some psychiatric diseases like depression, schizophrenia, and bipolar disorder, have been summarized. The evidence of the psychobiotics therapeutic outcomes obtained in preclinical and clinical trials have been given respectively for the observed neurodegenerative and psychiatric disorders.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jovana Drljača
- Faculty of Medicine, Department of PharmacyUniversity of Novi SadNovi SadSerbia
| | - Nataša Milošević
- Faculty of Medicine, Department of PharmacyUniversity of Novi SadNovi SadSerbia
| | - Maja Milanović
- Faculty of Medicine, Department of PharmacyUniversity of Novi SadNovi SadSerbia
| | - Ludovico Abenavoli
- Department of Health SciencesUniversity Magna Graecia Campus “Salvatore Venuta”CatanzaroItaly
| | - Nataša Milić
- Faculty of Medicine, Department of PharmacyUniversity of Novi SadNovi SadSerbia
| |
Collapse
|
18
|
Ai YW, Du Y, Chen L, Liu SH, Liu QS, Cheng Y. Brain Inflammatory Marker Abnormalities in Major Psychiatric Diseases: a Systematic Review of Postmortem Brain Studies. Mol Neurobiol 2023; 60:2116-2134. [PMID: 36600081 DOI: 10.1007/s12035-022-03199-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/15/2022] [Accepted: 12/23/2022] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
Schizophrenia (SCZ), bipolar disorder (BD), and major depressive disorder (MDD) are common neuropsychiatric disorders that lead to neuroinflammation in the pathogenesis. It is possible to further explore the connection between inflammation in the brain and SCZ, BD, and MDD. Therefore, we systematically reviewed PubMed and Web of Science on brain inflammatory markers measured in SCZ, BD, and MDD postmortem brains. Out of 2166 studies yielded by the search, 46 studies met the inclusion criteria in SCZ, BD, and MDD postmortem brains. The results were variable across inflammatory markers. For example, 26 studies were included to measure the differential expression between SCZ and control subjects. Similarly, seven of the included studies measured the differential expression of inflammatory markers in patients with BD. The heterogeneity from the included studies is not clear at present, which may be caused by several factors, including the measured brain region, disease stage, brain source, medication, and other factors.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yang-Wen Ai
- School of Pharmacy, Center on Translational Neuroscience, Minzu University of China, Haidian District, 27 Zhongguancun South St, 100081, Beijing, China
| | - Yang Du
- School of Pharmacy, Center on Translational Neuroscience, Minzu University of China, Haidian District, 27 Zhongguancun South St, 100081, Beijing, China
| | - Lei Chen
- School of Pharmacy, Center on Translational Neuroscience, Minzu University of China, Haidian District, 27 Zhongguancun South St, 100081, Beijing, China
| | - Shu-Han Liu
- School of Pharmacy, Center on Translational Neuroscience, Minzu University of China, Haidian District, 27 Zhongguancun South St, 100081, Beijing, China
| | - Qing-Shan Liu
- School of Pharmacy, Center on Translational Neuroscience, Minzu University of China, Haidian District, 27 Zhongguancun South St, 100081, Beijing, China.
| | - Yong Cheng
- School of Pharmacy, Center on Translational Neuroscience, Minzu University of China, Haidian District, 27 Zhongguancun South St, 100081, Beijing, China. .,Institute of National Security, Minzu University of China, Haidian District, 27 Zhongguancun South St, 100081, Beijing, China.
| |
Collapse
|
19
|
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.
Collapse
|
20
|
van Hooijdonk CFM, van der Pluijm M, Bosch I, van Amelsvoort TAMJ, Booij J, de Haan L, Selten JP, Giessen EVD. The substantia nigra in the pathology of schizophrenia: A review on post-mortem and molecular imaging findings. Eur Neuropsychopharmacol 2023; 68:57-77. [PMID: 36640734 DOI: 10.1016/j.euroneuro.2022.12.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2022] [Revised: 12/19/2022] [Accepted: 12/21/2022] [Indexed: 01/14/2023]
Abstract
Dysregulation of striatal dopamine is considered to be an important driver of pathophysiological processes in schizophrenia. Despite being one of the main origins of dopaminergic input to the striatum, the (dys)functioning of the substantia nigra (SN) has been relatively understudied in schizophrenia. Hence, this paper aims to review different molecular aspects of nigral functioning in patients with schizophrenia compared to healthy controls by integrating post-mortem and molecular imaging studies. We found evidence for hyperdopaminergic functioning in the SN of patients with schizophrenia (i.e. increased AADC activity in antipsychotic-free/-naïve patients and elevated neuromelanin accumulation). Reduced GABAergic inhibition (i.e. decreased density of GABAergic synapses, lower VGAT mRNA levels and lower mRNA levels for GABAA receptor subunits), excessive glutamatergic excitation (i.e. increased NR1 and Glur5 mRNA levels and a reduced number of astrocytes), and several other disturbances implicating the SN (i.e. immune functioning and copper concentrations) could potentially underlie this nigral hyperactivity and associated striatal hyperdopaminergic functioning in schizophrenia. These results highlight the importance of the SN in schizophrenia pathology and suggest that some aspects of molecular functioning in the SN could potentially be used as treatment targets or biomarkers.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Carmen F M van Hooijdonk
- Department of Psychiatry and Neuropsychology, School for Mental Health and Neuroscience (MHeNs), University of Maastricht, Maastricht, the Netherlands; Rivierduinen, Institute for Mental Health Care, Leiden, the Netherlands.
| | - Marieke van der Pluijm
- Department of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Amsterdam UMC, University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Iris Bosch
- Department of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Amsterdam UMC, University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Therese A M J van Amelsvoort
- Department of Psychiatry and Neuropsychology, School for Mental Health and Neuroscience (MHeNs), University of Maastricht, Maastricht, the Netherlands
| | - Jan Booij
- Department of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Amsterdam UMC, University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Lieuwe de Haan
- Department of Psychiatry, Amsterdam UMC, University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Jean-Paul Selten
- Department of Psychiatry and Neuropsychology, School for Mental Health and Neuroscience (MHeNs), University of Maastricht, Maastricht, the Netherlands; Rivierduinen, Institute for Mental Health Care, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | - Elsmarieke van de Giessen
- Department of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Amsterdam UMC, University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands
| |
Collapse
|
21
|
Sitarz R, Juchnowicz D, Karakuła K, Forma A, Baj J, Rog J, Karpiński R, Machrowska A, Karakuła-Juchnowicz H. Niacin Skin Flush Backs-From the Roots of the Test to Nowadays Hope. J Clin Med 2023; 12:jcm12051879. [PMID: 36902666 PMCID: PMC10003235 DOI: 10.3390/jcm12051879] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/04/2023] [Revised: 02/22/2023] [Accepted: 02/23/2023] [Indexed: 03/08/2023] Open
Abstract
The niacin skin flush test (NSFT) is a simple method used to assess the content of fatty acids in cell membranes and is a possible indicator of factors hidden behind various outcomes in patients. The purpose of this paper is to determine the potential usefulness of NSFT in mental disorder diagnostics along with the determination of factors that may affect its results. The authors reviewed articles from 1977 onwards, focusing on the history, variety of methodologies, influencing factors, and proposed mechanisms underlying its performance. Research indicated that NSFT could be applicable in early intervention, staging in psychiatry, and the search for new therapeutic methods and drugs based on the mechanisms of NSFT action. The NSFT can contribute to defining an individualized diet for patients and prevent the development of damaging disease effects at an early stage. There is promising evidence for supplementation with polyunsaturated fatty acids, which have a beneficial influence on the metabolic profile and are effective even in the subclinical phase of the disease. NSFT can contribute to the new classification of diseases and a better understanding of certain mental disorders' pathophysiology. However, there is a need to establish a validated method for assessing the NSFT results.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ryszard Sitarz
- 1st Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Early Intervention, Medical University of Lublin, Gluska Street 1, 20-439 Lublin, Poland
- Correspondence:
| | - Dariusz Juchnowicz
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychiatric Nursing, Medical University of Lublin, 20-059 Lublin, Poland
| | - Kaja Karakuła
- 1st Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Early Intervention, Medical University of Lublin, Gluska Street 1, 20-439 Lublin, Poland
- Department of Forensic Medicine, Medical University of Lublin, 20-059 Lublin, Poland
| | - Alicja Forma
- 1st Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Early Intervention, Medical University of Lublin, Gluska Street 1, 20-439 Lublin, Poland
- Department of Forensic Medicine, Medical University of Lublin, 20-059 Lublin, Poland
| | - Jacek Baj
- Department of Anatomy, Medical University of Lublin, 20-059 Lublin, Poland
| | - Joanna Rog
- Department of Dietetics, Institute of Human Nutrition Sciences, Warsaw University of Life Sciences (SGGW-WULS), 02-776 Warsaw, Poland
| | - Robert Karpiński
- 1st Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Early Intervention, Medical University of Lublin, Gluska Street 1, 20-439 Lublin, Poland
- Department of Machine Design and Mechatronics, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Lublin University of Technology, 20-618 Lublin, Poland
| | - Anna Machrowska
- Department of Machine Design and Mechatronics, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Lublin University of Technology, 20-618 Lublin, Poland
| | - Hanna Karakuła-Juchnowicz
- 1st Department of Psychiatry, Psychotherapy and Early Intervention, Medical University of Lublin, Gluska Street 1, 20-439 Lublin, Poland
| |
Collapse
|
22
|
Sharma V, Singh TG, Kaur A, Mannan A, Dhiman S. Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor: A Novel Dynamically Regulated Therapeutic Modulator in Neurological Disorders. Neurochem Res 2023; 48:317-339. [PMID: 36308619 DOI: 10.1007/s11064-022-03755-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2022] [Revised: 09/02/2022] [Accepted: 09/03/2022] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
The growth factor brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), and its receptor tropomyosin-related kinase receptor type B (TrkB) play an active role in numerous areas of the adult brain, where they regulate the neuronal activity, function, and survival. Upregulation and downregulation of BDNF expression are critical for the physiology of neuronal circuits and functioning in the brain. Loss of BDNF function has been reported in the brains of patients with neurodegenerative or psychiatric disorders. This article reviews the BDNF gene structure, transport, secretion, expression and functions in the brain. This article also implicates BDNF in several brain-related disorders, including Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, Huntington's disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, major depressive disorder, schizophrenia, epilepsy and bipolar disorder.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Veerta Sharma
- Chitkara College of Pharmacy, Chitkara University, 140401, Rajpura, Punjab, India
| | - Thakur Gurjeet Singh
- Chitkara College of Pharmacy, Chitkara University, 140401, Rajpura, Punjab, India.
| | - Amarjot Kaur
- Chitkara College of Pharmacy, Chitkara University, 140401, Rajpura, Punjab, India
| | - Ashi Mannan
- Chitkara College of Pharmacy, Chitkara University, 140401, Rajpura, Punjab, India
| | - Sonia Dhiman
- Chitkara College of Pharmacy, Chitkara University, 140401, Rajpura, Punjab, India
| |
Collapse
|
23
|
Chen Y, Dai J, Tang L, Mikhailova T, Liang Q, Li M, Zhou J, Kopp RF, Weickert C, Chen C, Liu C. Neuroimmune transcriptome changes in patient brains of psychiatric and neurological disorders. Mol Psychiatry 2023; 28:710-721. [PMID: 36424395 PMCID: PMC9911365 DOI: 10.1038/s41380-022-01854-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/01/2022] [Revised: 10/07/2022] [Accepted: 10/21/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Neuroinflammation has been implicated in multiple brain disorders but the extent and the magnitude of change in immune-related genes (IRGs) across distinct brain disorders has not been directly compared. In this study, 1275 IRGs were curated and their expression changes investigated in 2467 postmortem brains of controls and patients with six major brain disorders, including schizophrenia (SCZ), bipolar disorder (BD), autism spectrum disorder (ASD), major depressive disorder (MDD), Alzheimer's disease (AD), and Parkinson's disease (PD). There were 865 IRGs present across all microarray and RNA-seq datasets. More than 60% of the IRGs had significantly altered expression in at least one of the six disorders. The differentially expressed immune-related genes (dIRGs) shared across disorders were mainly related to innate immunity. Moreover, sex, tissue, and putative cell type were systematically evaluated for immune alterations in different neuropsychiatric disorders. Co-expression networks revealed that transcripts of the neuroimmune systems interacted with neuronal-systems, both of which contribute to the pathology of brain disorders. However, only a few genes with expression changes were also identified as containing risk variants in genome-wide association studies. The transcriptome alterations at gene and network levels may clarify the immune-related pathophysiology and help to better define neuropsychiatric and neurological disorders.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yu Chen
- Center for Medical Genetics & Hunan Key Laboratory of Medical Genetics, School of Life Sciences, and Department of Psychiatry, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
- Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Jiacheng Dai
- Center for Medical Genetics & Hunan Key Laboratory of Medical Genetics, School of Life Sciences, and Department of Psychiatry, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
- State Key Laboratory of Genetic Engineering, Human Phenome Institute, and School of Life Sciences, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
| | - Longfei Tang
- Center for Medical Genetics & Hunan Key Laboratory of Medical Genetics, School of Life Sciences, and Department of Psychiatry, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
| | - Tatiana Mikhailova
- Department of Psychiatry, SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, USA
| | - Qiuman Liang
- Center for Medical Genetics & Hunan Key Laboratory of Medical Genetics, School of Life Sciences, and Department of Psychiatry, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
| | - Miao Li
- Center for Medical Genetics & Hunan Key Laboratory of Medical Genetics, School of Life Sciences, and Department of Psychiatry, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
| | - Jiaqi Zhou
- Center for Medical Genetics & Hunan Key Laboratory of Medical Genetics, School of Life Sciences, and Department of Psychiatry, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China
| | - Richard F Kopp
- Department of Psychiatry, SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, USA
| | - Cynthia Weickert
- Department of Neuroscience and Physiology, SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, USA
- School of Psychiatry, UNSW, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Chao Chen
- Center for Medical Genetics & Hunan Key Laboratory of Medical Genetics, School of Life Sciences, and Department of Psychiatry, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China.
- Hunan Key Laboratory of Animal Models for Human Diseases, Central South University, Changsha, China.
| | - Chunyu Liu
- Center for Medical Genetics & Hunan Key Laboratory of Medical Genetics, School of Life Sciences, and Department of Psychiatry, The Second Xiangya Hospital, Central South University, Changsha, China.
- Department of Psychiatry, SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
24
|
Chemokine Dysregulation and Neuroinflammation in Schizophrenia: A Systematic Review. Int J Mol Sci 2023; 24:ijms24032215. [PMID: 36768537 PMCID: PMC9917146 DOI: 10.3390/ijms24032215] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/10/2022] [Revised: 01/16/2023] [Accepted: 01/18/2023] [Indexed: 01/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Chemokines are known to be immunoregulatory proteins involved not only in lymphocyte chemotaxis to the site of inflammation, but also in neuromodulation, neurogenesis, and neurotransmission. Multiple lines of evidence suggest a peripheral proinflammatory state and neuroinflammation in at least a third of patients with schizophrenia. Therefore, chemokines can be active players in these processes. In this systematic review, we analyzed the available data on chemokine dysregulation in schizophrenia and the association of chemokines with neuroinflammation. It has been shown that there is a genetic association of chemokine and chemokine receptor gene polymorphisms in schizophrenia. Besides, the most reliable data confirmed by the results of meta-analyses showed an increase in CXCL8/IL-8, CCL2/MCP-1, CCL4/MIP-1β, CCL11/eotaxin-1 in the blood of patients with schizophrenia. An increase in CXCL8 has been found in cerebrospinal fluid, but other chemokines have been less well studied. Increased/decreased expression of genes of chemokine and their receptors have been found in different areas of the brain and peripheral immune cells. The peripheral proinflammatory state may influence the expression of chemokines since their expression is regulated by pro- and anti-inflammatory cytokines. Mouse models have shown an association of schizophrenia with dysregulation of the CX3CL1-CX3CR1 and CXCL12-CXCR4 axes. Altogether, dysregulation in chemokine expression may contribute to neuroinflammation in schizophrenia. In conclusion, this evidence indicates the involvement of chemokines in the neurobiological processes associated with schizophrenia.
Collapse
|
25
|
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.
Collapse
|
26
|
Increased blood neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) associated with early life stress: translational findings in recent-onset schizophrenia and rodent model. Transl Psychiatry 2022; 12:526. [PMID: 36572669 PMCID: PMC9792518 DOI: 10.1038/s41398-022-02291-4] [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: 09/18/2022] [Revised: 12/12/2022] [Accepted: 12/14/2022] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Higher levels of interleukin (IL)-6 and elevated neutrophil counts are consistently reported in the blood of patients with schizophrenia. Stressors during childhood and/or adolescence are major socioenvironmental risk factors for schizophrenia and may contribute to immune dysregulation. Previous studies using blood cytokines to stratify patients with schizophrenia suggest that only a subset presents a low-grade inflammatory state. However, these studies have not addressed whether environmental factors such as childhood maltreatment contributed to identifying inflammatory clusters. Moreover, a neutrophil-related mechanism (Neutrophil Extracellular Traps; NETs) central to both the initiation and chronicity of autoimmune and inflammatory diseases has never been investigated in psychiatry. Elevated NETs in schizophrenia may predispose patients to inflammatory and autoimmune diseases resulting in reduced life expectancy. We, therefore, investigated NETs as a novel mechanism and biological target in early schizophrenia and their role together with IL-6 and childhood maltreatment in identifying cluster subgroups. We found increased NETs in the plasma of patients with early schizophrenia (n = 78) compared to both their unaffected siblings (n = 25) and community controls (n = 78), irrespective of sex, body mass index, psychoactive drug use, or tobacco smoking. Increased NETs in patients were unrelated to antipsychotic treatment, which was further tested in vitro using fresh neutrophils. By applying unsupervised two-step clustering analysis, we integrated values of NETs, IL-6, and childhood maltreatment scores. We identified two main clusters; childhood maltreatment scores and NETs were the most important variables contributing to cluster separation (high-CL1 and low-CL2), while IL-6 was the least contributor. Patients allocated in the high-CL1 (61.5%) had significantly higher childhood maltreatment scores, NETs, and IL-6 levels than the remaining groups (patients low-CL2, siblings, and controls high-CL1 and low-CL2). We complemented these findings with a rat model based on stress exposure during adolescence that results in several schizophrenia-like changes in adulthood. We found that adolescent stressed rats had higher NETs and IL-6 levels in serum compared to non-stressed rats with a tendency to produce more NETs from the bone marrow. Altogether, this study brings a novel cellular-based mechanism in schizophrenia that, combined with early-stress, could be useful to identify subgroups for more personalised treatments.
Collapse
|
27
|
Alnafisah R, Lundh A, Asah SM, Hoeflinger J, Wolfinger A, Hamoud AR, McCullumsmith RE, O'Donovan SM. Altered purinergic receptor expression in the frontal cortex in schizophrenia. SCHIZOPHRENIA (HEIDELBERG, GERMANY) 2022; 8:96. [PMID: 36376358 PMCID: PMC9663420 DOI: 10.1038/s41537-022-00312-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2022] [Accepted: 11/03/2022] [Indexed: 04/27/2023]
Abstract
ATP functions as a neurotransmitter, acting on the ubiquitously expressed family of purinergic P2 receptors. In schizophrenia (SCZ), the pathways that modulate extracellular ATP and its catabolism to adenosine are dysregulated. However, the effects of altered ATP availability on P2 receptor expression in the brain in SCZ have not been assessed. We assayed P2 receptor mRNA and protein expression in the DLPFC and ACC in subjects diagnosed with SCZ and matched, non-psychiatrically ill controls (n = 20-22/group). P2RX7, P2RX4 and male P2RX5 mRNA expression were significantly increased (p < 0.05) in the DLPFC in SCZ. Expression of P2RX7 protein isoform was also significantly increased (p < 0.05) in the DLPFC in SCZ. Significant increases in P2RX4 and male P2RX5 mRNA expression may be associated with antipsychotic medication effects. We found that P2RX4 and P2RX7 mRNA are significantly correlated with the inflammatory marker SERPINA3, and may suggest an association between upregulated P2XR and neuroinflammation in SCZ. These findings lend support for brain-region dependent dysregulation of the purinergic system in SCZ.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Rawan Alnafisah
- Department of Neurosciences, University of Toledo, Toledo, OH, USA
| | - Anna Lundh
- Department of Neurosciences, University of Toledo, Toledo, OH, USA
| | - Sophie M Asah
- Department of Neurosciences, University of Toledo, Toledo, OH, USA
| | - Julie Hoeflinger
- Department of Neurosciences, University of Toledo, Toledo, OH, USA
| | - Alyssa Wolfinger
- Department of Neurosciences, University of Toledo, Toledo, OH, USA
| | | | - Robert E McCullumsmith
- Department of Neurosciences, University of Toledo, Toledo, OH, USA
- Neurosciences Institute, Promedica, Toledo, OH, USA
| | | |
Collapse
|
28
|
Zhu Y, Owens SJ, Murphy CE, Ajulu K, Rothmond D, Purves-Tyson T, Middleton F, Webster MJ, Weickert CS. Inflammation-related transcripts define "high" and "low" subgroups of individuals with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder in the midbrain. Brain Behav Immun 2022; 105:149-159. [PMID: 35764269 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2022.06.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/13/2022] [Revised: 06/10/2022] [Accepted: 06/23/2022] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Dopamine dysregulation in schizophrenia may be associated with midbrain inflammation. Previously, we found elevated levels of pro-inflammatory cytokine mRNAs in the post-mortem midbrain of people with schizophrenia (46%) but not from unaffected controls (0%) using a brain cohort from Sydney, Australia. Here, we measured cytokine mRNAs and proteins in the midbrain in the Stanley Medical Research Institute (SMRI) array cohort (N = 105). We tested if the proportions of individuals with schizophrenia and with high inflammation can be replicated, and if individuals with bipolar disorder with elevated midbrain cytokines can be identified. mRNA levels of 7 immune transcripts from post-mortem midbrain tissue were measured via RT-PCR and two-step recursive clustering analysis was performed using 4 immune transcripts to define "high and low" inflammatory subgroups. The clustering predictors used were identical to our earlier midbrain study, and included: IL1B, IL6, TNF, and SERPINA3 mRNA levels. 46% of schizophrenia cases (16/35 SCZ), 6% of controls (2/33 CTRL), and 29% of bipolar disorder cases (10/35 BPD) were identified as belonging to the high inflammation (HI) subgroups [χ2 (2) = 13.54, p < 0.001]. When comparing inflammatory subgroups, all four mRNAs were significantly increased in SCZ-HI and BPD-HI compared to low inflammation controls (CTRL-LI) (p < 0.05). Additionally, protein levels of IL-1β, IL-6, and IL-18 were elevated in SCZ-HI and BPD-HI compared to all other low inflammatory subgroups (all p < 0.05). Surprisingly, TNF-α protein levels were unchanged according to subgroups. In conclusion, we determined that almost half of the individuals with schizophrenia were defined as having high inflammation in the midbrain, replicating our previous findings. Further, we detected close to one-third of those with bipolar disorder to be classified as having high inflammation. Elevations in some pro-inflammatory cytokine mRNAs (IL-1β and IL-6) were also found at the protein level, whereas TNF mRNA and protein levels were not concordant.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yunting Zhu
- Department of Neuroscience & Physiology, Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY 13210, USA
| | - Samantha J Owens
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Randwick, NSW 2031, Australia
| | - Caitlin E Murphy
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Randwick, NSW 2031, Australia
| | - Kachikwulu Ajulu
- Department of Neuroscience & Physiology, Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY 13210, USA
| | - Debora Rothmond
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Randwick, NSW 2031, Australia
| | - Tertia Purves-Tyson
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Randwick, NSW 2031, Australia
| | - Frank Middleton
- Department of Neuroscience & Physiology, Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY 13210, USA
| | - Maree J Webster
- Laboratory of Brain Research, Stanley Medical Research Institute, 9800 Medical Center Drive, Rockville, MD, USA
| | - Cynthia Shannon Weickert
- Department of Neuroscience & Physiology, Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY 13210, USA; Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Randwick, NSW 2031, Australia; School of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW 2052, Australia.
| |
Collapse
|
29
|
North HF, Weissleder C, Fullerton JM, Webster MJ, Weickert CS. Increased immune cell and altered microglia and neurogenesis transcripts in an Australian schizophrenia subgroup with elevated inflammation. Schizophr Res 2022; 248:208-218. [PMID: 36108465 DOI: 10.1016/j.schres.2022.08.025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2022] [Revised: 07/18/2022] [Accepted: 08/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
We previously identified a subgroup of schizophrenia cases (~40 %) with heightened inflammation in the neurogenic subependymal zone (SEZ) (North et al., 2021b). This schizophrenia subgroup had changes indicating reduced microglial activity, increased peripheral immune cells, increased stem cell dormancy/quiescence and reduced neuronal precursor cells. The present follow-up study aimed to replicate and extend those novel findings in an independent post-mortem cohort of schizophrenia cases and controls from Australia. RNA was extracted from SEZ tissue from 20 controls and 22 schizophrenia cases from the New South Wales Brain Tissue Resource Centre, and gene expression analysis was performed. Cluster analysis of inflammation markers (IL1B, IL1R1, SERPINA3 and CXCL8) revealed a high-inflammation schizophrenia subgroup comprising 52 % of cases, which was a significantly greater proportion than the 17 % of high-inflammation controls. Consistent with our previous report (North et al., 2021b), those with high-inflammation and schizophrenia had unchanged mRNA expression of markers for steady-state and activated microglia (IBA1, HEXB, CD68), decreased expression of phagocytic microglia markers (P2RY12, P2RY13), but increased expression of markers for macrophages (CD163), monocytes (CD14), natural killer cells (FCGR3A), and the adhesion molecule ICAM1. Similarly, the high-inflammation schizophrenia subgroup emulated increased quiescent stem cell marker (GFAPD) and decreased neuronal progenitor (DLX6-AS1) and immature neuron marker (DCX) mRNA expression; but also revealed a novel increase in a marker of immature astrocytes (VIM). Replicating primary results in an independent cohort demonstrates that inflammatory subgroups in the SEZ in schizophrenia are reliable, robust and enhance understanding of neuropathological heterogeneity when studying schizophrenia.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Hayley F North
- Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW, Australia; School of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine & Health, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Christin Weissleder
- Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW, Australia; German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE), Tübingen, Germany; Department of Neurodegenerative Diseases, Hertie-Institute for Clinical Brain Research, University of Tübingen, Tübingen, Germany
| | - Janice M Fullerton
- Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW, Australia; School of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine & Health, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Maree J Webster
- Laboratory of Brain Research, Stanley Medical Research Institute, 9800 Medical Center Drive, Rockville, MD, USA
| | - Cynthia Shannon Weickert
- Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW, Australia; School of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine & Health, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia; Department of Neuroscience and Physiology, Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
30
|
A Minireview Exploring the Interplay of the Muscle-Gut-Brain (MGB) Axis to Improve Knowledge on Mental Disorders: Implications for Clinical Neuroscience Research and Therapeutics. OXIDATIVE MEDICINE AND CELLULAR LONGEVITY 2022; 2022:8806009. [PMID: 36160716 PMCID: PMC9499796 DOI: 10.1155/2022/8806009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/03/2022] [Accepted: 08/17/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
What benefit might emerge from connecting clinical neuroscience with microbiology and exercise science? What about the influence of the muscle-gut-brain (MGB) axis on mental health? The gut microbiota colonizes the intestinal tract and plays a pivotal role in digestion, production of vitamins and immune system development, but it is also able to exert a particular effect on psychological well-being and appears to play a critical role in regulating several muscle metabolic pathways. Endogenous and exogenous factors may cause dysbiosis, with relevant consequences on the composition and function of the gut microbiota that may also modulate muscle responses to exercise. The capacity of specific psychobiotics in ameliorating mental health as complementary strategies has been recently suggested as a novel treatment for some neuropsychiatric diseases. Moreover, physical exercise can modify qualitative and quantitative composition of the gut microbiota and alleviate certain psychopathological symptoms. In this minireview, we documented evidence about the impact of the MGB axis on mental health, which currently appears to be a possible target in the context of a multidimensional intervention mainly including pharmacological and psychotherapeutic treatments, especially for depressive mood.
Collapse
|
31
|
Petty A, Glass LJ, Rothmond DA, Purves-Tyson T, Sweeney A, Kondo Y, Kubo S, Matsumoto M, Weickert CS. Increased levels of a pro-inflammatory IgG receptor in the midbrain of people with schizophrenia. J Neuroinflammation 2022; 19:188. [PMID: 35841099 PMCID: PMC9287858 DOI: 10.1186/s12974-022-02541-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2022] [Accepted: 06/22/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND There is growing evidence that neuroinflammation may contribute to schizophrenia neuropathology. Elevated pro-inflammatory cytokines are evident in the midbrain from schizophrenia subjects, findings that are driven by a subgroup of patients, characterised as a "high inflammation" biotype. Cytokines trigger the release of antibodies, of which immunoglobulin G (IgG) is the most common. The level and function of IgG is regulated by its transporter (FcGRT) and by pro-inflammatory IgG receptors (including FcGR3A) in balance with the anti-inflammatory IgG receptor FcGR2B. Testing whether abnormalities in IgG activity contribute to the neuroinflammatory abnormalities schizophrenia patients, particularly those with elevated cytokines, may help identify novel treatment targets. METHODS Post-mortem midbrain tissue from healthy controls and schizophrenia cases (n = 58 total) was used to determine the localisation and abundance of IgG and IgG transporters and receptors in the midbrain of healthy controls and schizophrenia patients. Protein levels of IgG and FcGRT were quantified using western blot, and gene transcript levels of FcGRT, FcGR3A and FcGR2B were assessed using qPCR. The distribution of IgG in the midbrain was assessed using immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence. Results were compared between diagnostic (schizophrenia vs control) and inflammatory (high vs low inflammation) groups. RESULTS We found that IgG and FcGRT protein abundance (relative to β-actin) was unchanged in people with schizophrenia compared with controls irrespective of inflammatory subtype. In contrast, FcGRT and FcGR3A mRNA levels were elevated in the midbrain from "high inflammation" schizophrenia cases (FcGRT; p = 0.02, FcGR3A; p < 0.0001) in comparison to low-inflammation patients and healthy controls, while FcGR2B mRNA levels were unchanged. IgG immunoreactivity was evident in the midbrain, and approximately 24% of all individuals (control subjects and schizophrenia cases) showed diffusion of IgG from blood vessels into the brain. However, the intensity and distribution of IgG was comparable across schizophrenia cases and control subjects. CONCLUSION These findings suggest that an increase in the pro-inflammatory Fcγ receptor FcGR3A, rather than an overall increase in IgG levels, contribute to midbrain neuroinflammation in schizophrenia patients. However, more precise information about IgG-Fcγ receptor interactions is needed to determine their potential role in schizophrenia neuropathology.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- A Petty
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW, 2031, Australia
- School of Psychiatry, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, 2052, Australia
| | - L J Glass
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW, 2031, Australia
- Centre for Immunology and Allergy Research, Westmead Institute of Medical Research, The University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
| | - D A Rothmond
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW, 2031, Australia
| | - T Purves-Tyson
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW, 2031, Australia
- School of Psychiatry, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, 2052, Australia
| | - A Sweeney
- NSW Brain Tissue Resource Centre, University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW, 2006, Australia
| | - Y Kondo
- Astellas Research Institute of America LLC, San Diego, CA, 92121, USA
| | - S Kubo
- Astellas Pharma Inc., Tsukuba, Ibaraki, 305-8585, Japan
| | - M Matsumoto
- Astellas Research Institute of America LLC, San Diego, CA, 92121, USA
| | - C 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, NY, 13210, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
32
|
Childers E, Bowen EFW, Rhodes CH, Granger R. Immune-Related Genomic Schizophrenic Subtyping Identified in DLPFC Transcriptome. Genes (Basel) 2022; 13:genes13071200. [PMID: 35885983 PMCID: PMC9319783 DOI: 10.3390/genes13071200] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/09/2022] [Revised: 05/26/2022] [Accepted: 06/29/2022] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Well-documented evidence of the physiologic, genetic, and behavioral heterogeneity of schizophrenia suggests that diagnostic subtyping may clarify the underlying pathobiology of the disorder. Recent studies have demonstrated that increased inflammation may be a prominent feature of a subset of schizophrenics. However, these findings are inconsistent, possibly due to evaluating schizophrenics as a single group. In this study, we segregated schizophrenic patients into two groups (“Type 1”, “Type 2”) by their gene expression in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex and explored biological differences between the subgroups. The study included post-mortem tissue samples that were sequenced in multiple, publicly available gene datasets using different sequencing methods. To evaluate the role of inflammation, the expression of genes in multiple components of neuroinflammation were examined: complement cascade activation, glial cell activation, pro-inflammatory mediator secretion, blood–brain barrier (BBB) breakdown, chemokine production and peripheral immune cell infiltration. The Type 2 schizophrenics showed widespread abnormal gene expression across all the neuroinflammation components that was not observed in Type 1 schizophrenics. Our results demonstrate the importance of separating schizophrenic patients into their molecularly defined subgroups and provide supporting evidence for the involvement of the immune-related pathways in a schizophrenic subset.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Eva Childers
- Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755, USA; (E.C.); (E.F.W.B.)
| | | | | | - Richard Granger
- Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH 03755, USA; (E.C.); (E.F.W.B.)
- Correspondence:
| |
Collapse
|
33
|
Dunleavy C, Elsworthy RJ, Upthegrove R, Wood SJ, Aldred S. Inflammation in first-episode psychosis: The contribution of inflammatory biomarkers to the emergence of negative symptoms, a systematic review and meta-analysis. Acta Psychiatr Scand 2022; 146:6-20. [PMID: 35202480 PMCID: PMC9310618 DOI: 10.1111/acps.13416] [Citation(s) in RCA: 60] [Impact Index Per Article: 30.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2021] [Revised: 01/28/2022] [Accepted: 02/13/2022] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To provide a comprehensive analysis of cytokine perturbations in antipsychotic-naïve first-episode psychosis (FEP) populations and assess the relationship between inflammatory biomarkers and negative symptom severity. METHODS A systematic review and meta-analysis following PRISMA guidelines were conducted. A total of 1042 records were identified via systematic search of EMBASE, MEDLINE and APA PsycInfo databases. Sixteen studies met the inclusion criteria and were eligible for inclusion in the review. Ten of these studies had sufficient data for inclusion in a random effects, pooled-effect meta-analysis. RESULTS A significant and large effect size was reported for IFN-γ, IL-6 and IL-12, and a moderate effect size reported for IL-17 (p = <0.05) in people with antipsychotic naive first episode psychosis, compared to healthy controls, suggesting a significant elevation in proinflammatory cytokine concentration. Non-significant effect sizes were reported for TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-2, IL-4, IL-8 and IL-10 (p = >0.05). Regarding proinflammatory cytokines and relationships to negative symptomology, moderate positive relationships were reported for negative symptoms and IL-1β, IL-2, IL-6 and TNF-α, across four studies. For anti-inflammatory cytokines, one strong and one weak-to-moderate negative relationship was described for IL-10 and negative symptoms. Contrastingly, a strong positive relationship was reported for IL-4 and negative symptoms. CONCLUSION There is evidence of significantly elevated proinflammatory cytokines in antipsychotic-naïve FEP populations, alongside promising findings from cohort data suggesting an interaction between inflammation and primary negative symptomology. Future studies should seek to come to a consensus on a panel of cytokines that relate most specifically to negative symptoms, and consider longitudinal studies to investigate how cytokine fluctuations may relate to exacerbation of symptoms.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Connor Dunleavy
- School of Sport, Exercise, and Rehabilitation SciencesUniversity of BirminghamBirminghamUK,School of PsychologyInstitute for Mental HealthUniversity of BirminghamBirminghamUK
| | - Richard J. Elsworthy
- School of Sport, Exercise, and Rehabilitation SciencesUniversity of BirminghamBirminghamUK
| | - Rachel Upthegrove
- School of PsychologyInstitute for Mental HealthUniversity of BirminghamBirminghamUK,Early Intervention ServiceBirmingham Women's and Children's NHS Foundation TrustCentre for Human Brain Health (CHBH)University of BirminghamBirminghamUK
| | - Stephen J. Wood
- School of Sport, Exercise, and Rehabilitation SciencesUniversity of BirminghamBirminghamUK,School of PsychologyInstitute for Mental HealthUniversity of BirminghamBirminghamUK,Centre for Youth Mental HealthUniversity of MelbourneMelbourneVictoriaAustralia,Orygen Youth HealthParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
| | - Sarah Aldred
- School of Sport, Exercise, and Rehabilitation SciencesUniversity of BirminghamBirminghamUK
| |
Collapse
|
34
|
Zhu Y, Webster MJ, Murphy CE, Middleton FA, Massa PT, Liu C, Dai R, Weickert CS. Distinct Phenotypes of Inflammation Associated Macrophages and Microglia in the Prefrontal Cortex Schizophrenia Compared to Controls. Front Neurosci 2022; 16:858989. [PMID: 35844224 PMCID: PMC9279891 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2022.858989] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2022] [Accepted: 06/01/2022] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Approximately 40% of people with schizophrenia are classified as having "high inflammation." This subgroup has worse neuropathology than patients with "low inflammation." Thus, one would expect the resident microglia and possibly monocyte-derived macrophages infiltrating from the periphery to be "activated" in those with schizophrenia with elevated neuroinflammation. To test whether microglia and/or macrophages are associated with increased inflammatory signaling in schizophrenia, we measured microglia- and macrophage-associated transcripts in the postmortem dorsolateral prefrontal cortex of 69 controls and 72 people with schizophrenia. Both groups were stratified by neuroinflammatory status based on cortical mRNA levels of cytokines and SERPINA3. We found microglial mRNAs levels were either unchanged (IBA1 and Hexb, p > 0.20) or decreased (CD11c, <62% p < 0.001) in high inflammation schizophrenia compared to controls. Conversely, macrophage CD163 mRNA levels were increased in patients, substantially so in the high inflammation schizophrenia subgroup compared to low inflammation subgroup (>250%, p < 0.0001). In contrast, high inflammation controls did not have elevated CD163 mRNA compared to low inflammation controls (p > 0.05). The pro-inflammatory macrophage marker (CD64 mRNA) was elevated (>160%, all p < 0.05) and more related to CD163 mRNA in the high inflammation schizophrenia subgroup compared to high inflammation controls, while anti-inflammatory macrophage and cytokine markers (CD206 and IL-10 mRNAs) were either unchanged or decreased in schizophrenia. Finally, macrophage recruitment chemokine CCL2 mRNA was increased in schizophrenia (>200%, p < 0.0001) and CCL2 mRNA levels positively correlated with CD163 mRNA (r = 0.46, p < 0.0001). Collectively, our findings support the co-existence of quiescent microglia and increased pro-inflammatory macrophages in the cortex of people with schizophrenia.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yunting Zhu
- Department of Neuroscience, SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, United States
| | - Maree J. Webster
- Stanley Medical Research Institute, Rockville, MD, United States
| | - Caitlin E. Murphy
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Frank A. Middleton
- Department of Neuroscience, SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, United States
| | - Paul T. Massa
- Department of Neurology and Microbiology and Immunology, SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, United States
| | - Chunyu Liu
- Department of Psychiatry, SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, United States
| | - Rujia Dai
- Department of Psychiatry, SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, United States
| | - Cyndi Shannon Weickert
- Department of Neuroscience, SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, United States
- Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW, Australia
- School of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| |
Collapse
|
35
|
Dietary emulsifier consumption alters gene expression in the amygdala and paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus in mice. Sci Rep 2022; 12:9146. [PMID: 35650224 PMCID: PMC9159048 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-13021-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2022] [Accepted: 05/13/2022] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Dietary emulsifier consumption promotes systemic low-grade inflammation, metabolic deregulation, and possibly an anxiety-like phenotype. The latter finding suggests that dietary emulsifiers impact brain areas that modulate stress responses. The goal of the current study was to test whether emulsifier consumption is associated with changes in gene expression in the amygdala and the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus (PVN), two brain areas that are involved in behavioral and neuroendocrine responses to stress. Using RNA-Seq, we compared groups consuming either carboxymethylcellulose or polysorbate 80 for 12-weeks. A total of 243 genes were differentially expressed in the amygdala and PVN of emulsifier-treated mice compared to controls. There was minimal overlap of differentially expressed genes in CMC- and P80-treated animals, suggesting that each emulsifier acts via distinct molecular mechanisms to produce an anxiety-like phenotype. Furthermore, gene ontology and pathway analysis revealed that various stress, metabolic, and immune terms and pathways were altered by emulsifiers. These findings are the first to demonstrate that emulsifier consumption changes gene expression in brain regions that are critical for stress responding, providing possible molecular mechanisms that may underly the previously observed anxiety-like phenotype.
Collapse
|
36
|
Abstract
PURPOSE OF REVIEW The vascular hypothesis of schizophrenia (SZ) postulates that brain endothelial dysfunction contributes to brain pathophysiology. This review discusses recent evidence for and against this hypothesis, including data related to blood-brain barrier (BBB), brain endothelium, and brain blood supply, to provide a critical weighed update. RECENT FINDINGS Different studies report a consistent proportion of SZ patients showing increased BBB permeability, reflected by higher levels of albumin in the cerebral spinal fluid. Of note, this was not a result of antipsychotic medication. The high inflammatory profile observed in some SZ patients is strongly associated with increased BBB permeability to circulating immune cells, and with more severe cognitive deficiencies. Also, sex was found to interact with BBB integrity and permeability in SZ. The strongest independent genetic association with SZ has been identified in FZD1, a hypoxia-response gene that is 600-fold higher expressed in early development endothelium as compared to adult brain endothelium. Regarding brain blood supply, there is evidence to suggest alterations in proper brain perfusion in SZ. Nonetheless, ex-vivo experiments suggested that widely used antipsychotics favor vasoconstriction; thus, alterations in cerebral perfusion might be related to the patients' medication. SUMMARY In some patients with SZ, a vulnerable brain endothelium may be interacting with environmental stressors, such as inflammation or hypoxia, converging into a more severe SZ symptomatology. Gene expression and performance of human brain endothelium could vary along with development and the establishment of the BBB; therefore, we encourage to investigate its possible contribution to SZ considering this dynamic context.
Collapse
|
37
|
Kelly DL, Buchanan RW. Can the current schizophrenia construct endure? Schizophr Res 2022; 242:64-66. [PMID: 35067456 DOI: 10.1016/j.schres.2021.12.028] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/08/2021] [Revised: 12/20/2021] [Accepted: 12/21/2021] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Deanna L Kelly
- University of Maryland, School of Medicine, Maryland Psychiatric Research Center, Box 21247, Baltimore, MD 21228, United States.
| | - Robert W Buchanan
- University of Maryland, School of Medicine, Maryland Psychiatric Research Center, Box 21247, Baltimore, MD 21228, United States.
| |
Collapse
|
38
|
Lippard ETC, Nemeroff CB. Going beyond risk factor: Childhood maltreatment and associated modifiable targets to improve life-long outcomes in mood disorders. Pharmacol Biochem Behav 2022; 215:173361. [PMID: 35219755 DOI: 10.1016/j.pbb.2022.173361] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/21/2021] [Revised: 02/17/2022] [Accepted: 02/20/2022] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
Abstract
Childhood maltreatment increases risk for mood disorders and is associated with earlier onset-and more pernicious disease course following onset-of mood disorders. While the majority of studies to date have been cross-sectional, longitudinal studies are emerging and support the devastating role(s) childhood maltreatment has on development of, and illness course in, mood disorders. This manuscript extends prior reviews to emphasize more recent work, highlighting longitudinal data, and discusses treatment studies that provide clues to mechanisms that mediate disease risk, course, relapse, and treatment response. Evidence suggesting systemic inflammation, alterations in hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis function and corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) neural systems, genetic and other familial factors as mechanisms that mediate risk and onset of, and illness course in, mood disorders following childhood maltreatment is discussed. Risky behaviors following maltreatment, e.g., substance use and unhealthy lifestyles, may further exacerbate alterations in the HPA axis, CRF neural systems, and systematic inflammation to contribute to a more pernicious disease course. More research on sex differences and the impact of maltreatment in vulnerable populations is needed. Future research needs to be aimed at leveraging knowledge on modifiable targets, going beyond childhood maltreatment as a risk factor, to inform prevention and treatment strategies and foster trauma-informed care.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Elizabeth T C Lippard
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Dell Medical School, University of Texas, Austin, TX, USA; Institute of Early Life Adversity Research, Dell Medical School, University of Texas, Austin, TX, USA; Waggoner Center for Alcohol and Addiction Research, University of Texas, Austin, TX, USA; Department of Psychology, University of Texas, Austin, TX, USA; Mulva Clinic for Neuroscience, Dell Medical School, University of Texas, Austin, TX, USA.
| | - Charles B Nemeroff
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Dell Medical School, University of Texas, Austin, TX, USA; Institute of Early Life Adversity Research, Dell Medical School, University of Texas, Austin, TX, USA; Waggoner Center for Alcohol and Addiction Research, University of Texas, Austin, TX, USA; Mulva Clinic for Neuroscience, Dell Medical School, University of Texas, Austin, TX, USA
| |
Collapse
|
39
|
Hoang D, Xu Y, Lutz O, Bannai D, Zeng V, Bishop JR, Keshavan M, Lizano P. Inflammatory Subtypes in Antipsychotic-Naïve First-Episode Schizophrenia are Associated with Altered Brain Morphology and Topological Organization. Brain Behav Immun 2022; 100:297-308. [PMID: 34875344 PMCID: PMC8767408 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2021.11.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2021] [Revised: 11/01/2021] [Accepted: 11/26/2021] [Indexed: 02/03/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Peripheral inflammation is implicated in schizophrenia, however, not all individuals demonstrate inflammatory alterations. Recent studies identified inflammatory subtypes in chronic psychosis with high inflammation having worse cognitive performance and displaying neuroanatomical enlargement compared to low inflammation subtypes. It is unclear if inflammatory subtypes exist earlier in the disease course, thus, we aim to identify inflammatory subtypes in antipsychotic naïve First-Episode Schizophrenia (FES). METHODS 12 peripheral inflammatory markers, clinical, cognitive, and neuroanatomical measures were collected from a naturalistic study of antipsychotic-naïve FES patients. A combination of unsupervised principal component analysis and hierarchical clustering was used to categorize inflammatory subtypes from their cytokine data (17 FES High, 30 FES Low, and 33 healthy controls (HCs)). Linear regression analysis was used to assess subtype differences. Neuroanatomical correlations with clinical and cognitive measures were performed using partial Spearman correlations. Graph theoretical analyses were performed to assess global and local network properties across inflammatory subtypes. RESULTS The FES High group made up 36% of the FES group and demonstrated significantly greater levels of IL1β, IL6, IL8, and TNFα compared to FES Low, and higher levels of IL1β and IL8 compared to HCs. FES High had greater right parahippocampal, caudal anterior cingulate, and bank superior sulcus thicknesses compared to FES Low. Compared to HCs, FES Low showed smaller bilateral amygdala volumes and widespread cortical thickness. FES High and FES Low groups demonstrated less efficient topological organization compared to HCs. Individual cytokines and/or inflammatory signatures were positively associated with cognition and symptom measures. CONCLUSIONS Inflammatory subtypes are present in antipsychotic-naïve FES and are associated with inflammation-mediated cortical expansion. These findings support our previous findings in chronic psychosis and point towards a connection between inflammation and blood-brain barrier disruption. Thus, identifying inflammatory subtypes may provide a novel therapeutic avenue for biomarker-guided treatment involving anti-inflammatory medications.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Dung Hoang
- Department of Psychiatry, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Yanxun Xu
- Department of Applied Mathematics and Statistics, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Olivia Lutz
- Department of Psychiatry, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Deepthi Bannai
- Department of Psychiatry, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Victor Zeng
- Department of Psychiatry, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Jeffrey R Bishop
- Department of Experimental and Clinical Pharmacology and Psychiatry, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN, USA
| | - Matcheri Keshavan
- Department of Psychiatry, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Paulo Lizano
- Department of Psychiatry, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, MA, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
40
|
Rahman T, Purves-Tyson T, Geddes AE, Huang XF, Newell KA, Weickert CS. N-Methyl-d-Aspartate receptor and inflammation in dorsolateral prefrontal cortex in schizophrenia. Schizophr Res 2022; 240:61-70. [PMID: 34952289 DOI: 10.1016/j.schres.2021.11.045] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/24/2021] [Revised: 11/02/2021] [Accepted: 11/27/2021] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
Lower N-methyl-d-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) GluN1 subunit levels and heightened neuroinflammation are found in the cortex in schizophrenia. Since neuroinflammation can lead to changes in NMDAR function, it is possible that these observations are linked in schizophrenia. We aimed to extend our previous studies by measuring molecular indices of NMDARs that define key functional properties of this receptor - particularly the ratio of GluN2A and GluN2B subunits - in dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) from schizophrenia and control cases (37/37). We sought to test whether changes in these measures are specific to the subset of schizophrenia cases with high levels of inflammation-related mRNAs, defined as a high inflammatory subgroup. Quantitative autoradiography was used to detect 'functional' NMDARs ([3H]MK-801), GluN1-coupled-GluN2A subunits ([3H]CGP-39653), and GluN1-coupled-GluN2B subunits ([3H]Ifenprodil). Quantitative RT-PCR was used to measure NMDAR subunit transcripts (GRIN1, GRIN2A and GRIN2B). The ratios of GluN2A:GluN2B binding and GRIN2A:GRIN2B mRNAs were calculated as an index of putative NMDAR composition. We found: 1) GluN2A binding, and 2) the ratios of GluN2A:GluN2B binding and GRIN2A:GRIN2B mRNAs were lower in schizophrenia cases versus controls (p < 0.05), and 3) lower GluN2A:GluN2B binding and GRIN2A:GRIN2B mRNA ratios were exaggerated in the high inflammation/schizophrenia subgroup compared to the low inflammation/control subgroup (p < 0.05). No other NMDAR-related indices were significantly changed in the high inflammation/schizophrenia subgroup. This suggests that neuroinflammation may alter NMDAR stoichiometry rather than targeting total NMDAR levels overall, and future studies could aim to determine if anti-inflammatory treatment can alleviate this aspect of NMDAR-related pathology.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tasnim Rahman
- Neuroscience Research Australia (NeuRA), Sydney, NSW, Australia; School of Psychiatry, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Tertia Purves-Tyson
- Neuroscience Research Australia (NeuRA), Sydney, NSW, Australia; School of Psychiatry, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia
| | - Amy E Geddes
- School of Medicine and Molecular Horizons, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW, Australia; Illawarra Health and Medical Research Institute, Wollongong, Australia
| | - Xu-Feng Huang
- School of Medicine and Molecular Horizons, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW, Australia; Illawarra Health and Medical Research Institute, Wollongong, Australia
| | - Kelly A Newell
- School of Medicine and Molecular Horizons, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, NSW, Australia; Illawarra Health and Medical Research Institute, Wollongong, Australia.
| | - Cynthia Shannon Weickert
- Neuroscience Research Australia (NeuRA), Sydney, NSW, Australia; School of Psychiatry, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, Australia; Department of Neuroscience & Physiology, Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
41
|
Murphy CE, Walker AK, O'Donnell M, Galletly C, Lloyd AR, Liu D, Weickert CS, Weickert TW. Peripheral NF-κB dysregulation in people with schizophrenia drives inflammation: putative anti-inflammatory functions of NF-κB kinases. Transl Psychiatry 2022; 12:21. [PMID: 35027554 PMCID: PMC8758779 DOI: 10.1038/s41398-021-01764-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2021] [Revised: 11/23/2021] [Accepted: 11/30/2021] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Elevations in plasma levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines and C-reactive protein (CRP) in patient blood have been associated with impairments in cognitive abilities and more severe psychiatric symptoms in people with schizophrenia. The transcription factor nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) regulates the gene expression of pro-inflammatory factors whose protein products trigger CRP release. NF-κB activation pathway mRNAs are increased in the brain in schizophrenia and are strongly related to neuroinflammation. Thus, it is likely that this central immune regulator is also dysregulated in the blood and associated with cytokine and CRP levels. We measured levels of six pro-inflammatory cytokine mRNAs and 18 mRNAs encoding NF-κB pathway members in peripheral blood leukocytes from 87 people with schizophrenia and 83 healthy control subjects. We then assessed the relationships between the alterations in NF-κB pathway genes, pro-inflammatory cytokine and CRP levels, psychiatric symptoms and cognition in people with schizophrenia. IL-1β and IFN-γ mRNAs were increased in patients compared to controls (both p < 0.001), while IL-6, IL-8, IL-18, and TNF-α mRNAs did not differ. Recursive two-step cluster analysis revealed that high levels of IL-1β mRNA and high levels of plasma CRP defined 'high inflammation' individuals in our cohort, and a higher proportion of people with schizophrenia were identified as displaying 'high inflammation' compared to controls using this method (p = 0.03). Overall, leukocyte expression of the NF-κB-activating receptors, TLR4 and TNFR2, and the NF-κB subunit, RelB, was increased in people with schizophrenia compared to healthy control subjects (all p < 0.01), while NF-κB-inducing kinase mRNAs IKKβ and NIK were downregulated in patients (all p < 0.05). We found that elevations in TLR4 and RelB appear more related to inflammatory status than to a diagnosis of schizophrenia, but changes in TNFR2 occur in both the high and low inflammation patients (but were exaggerated in high inflammation patients). Further, decreased leukocyte expression of IKKβ and NIK mRNAs was unique to high inflammation patients, which may represent schizophrenia-specific dysregulation of NF-κB that gives rise to peripheral inflammation in a subset of patients.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Caitlin E Murphy
- Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- School of Psychiatry, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia
| | - Adam K Walker
- Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- School of Psychiatry, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia
- Drug Discovery Biology Theme, Monash University, Parkville, Australia
| | | | - Cherrie Galletly
- Discipline of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
- Northern Adelaide Local Health Network, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
- Ramsay Health Care (SA) Mental Health, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
| | - Andrew R Lloyd
- Kirby Institute, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia
| | - Dennis Liu
- Discipline of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
- Northern Adelaide Local Health Network, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
| | - Cynthia Shannon Weickert
- Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
- School of Psychiatry, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia.
- Department of Neuroscience & Physiology, Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, New York, NY, USA.
| | - Thomas W Weickert
- Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
- School of Psychiatry, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia
- Department of Neuroscience & Physiology, Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, New York, NY, USA
| |
Collapse
|
42
|
Ermakov EA, Melamud MM, Buneva VN, Ivanova SA. Immune System Abnormalities in Schizophrenia: An Integrative View and Translational Perspectives. Front Psychiatry 2022; 13:880568. [PMID: 35546942 PMCID: PMC9082498 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2022.880568] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 22.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2022] [Accepted: 03/30/2022] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
The immune system is generally known to be the primary defense mechanism against pathogens. Any pathological conditions are reflected in anomalies in the immune system parameters. Increasing evidence suggests the involvement of immune dysregulation and neuroinflammation in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia. In this systematic review, we summarized the available evidence of abnormalities in the immune system in schizophrenia. We analyzed impairments in all immune system components and assessed the level of bias in the available evidence. It has been shown that schizophrenia is associated with abnormalities in all immune system components: from innate to adaptive immunity and from humoral to cellular immunity. Abnormalities in the immune organs have also been observed in schizophrenia. Evidence of increased C-reactive protein, dysregulation of cytokines and chemokines, elevated levels of neutrophils and autoantibodies, and microbiota dysregulation in schizophrenia have the lowest risk of bias. Peripheral immune abnormalities contribute to neuroinflammation, which is associated with cognitive and neuroanatomical alterations and contributes to the pathogenesis of schizophrenia. However, signs of severe inflammation are observed in only about 1/3 of patients with schizophrenia. Immunological parameters may help identify subgroups of individuals with signs of inflammation who well respond to anti-inflammatory therapy. Our integrative approach also identified gaps in knowledge about immune abnormalities in schizophrenia, and new horizons for the research are proposed.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Evgeny A Ermakov
- Laboratory of Repair Enzymes, Institute of Chemical Biology and Fundamental Medicine, Novosibirsk, Russia.,Department of Natural Sciences, Novosibirsk State University, Novosibirsk, Russia
| | - Mark M Melamud
- Laboratory of Repair Enzymes, Institute of Chemical Biology and Fundamental Medicine, Novosibirsk, Russia
| | - Valentina N Buneva
- Laboratory of Repair Enzymes, Institute of Chemical Biology and Fundamental Medicine, Novosibirsk, Russia.,Department of Natural Sciences, Novosibirsk State University, Novosibirsk, Russia
| | - Svetlana A Ivanova
- Laboratory of Molecular Genetics and Biochemistry, Mental Health Research Institute, Tomsk National Research Medical Center of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Tomsk, Russia
| |
Collapse
|
43
|
Agarwal K, Manza P, Chapman M, Nawal N, Biesecker E, McPherson K, Dennis E, Johnson A, Volkow ND, Joseph PV. Inflammatory Markers in Substance Use and Mood Disorders: A Neuroimaging Perspective. Front Psychiatry 2022; 13:863734. [PMID: 35558424 PMCID: PMC9086785 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2022.863734] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2022] [Accepted: 03/17/2022] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Chronic exposure to addictive drugs in substance use disorders and stressors in mood disorders render the brain more vulnerable to inflammation. Inflammation in the brain, or neuroinflammation, is characterized by gliosis, microglial activation, and sustained release of cytokines, chemokines, and pro-inflammatory factors compromising the permeability of the blood-brain barrier. There is increased curiosity in understanding how substance misuse and/or repeated stress exposure affect inflammation and contribute to abnormal neuronal activity, altered neuroplasticity, and impaired cognitive control, which eventually promote compulsive drug-use behaviors and worsen mood disorders. This review will emphasize human imaging studies to explore the link between brain function and peripheral markers of inflammation in substance use disorders and mood disorders.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Khushbu Agarwal
- Section of Sensory Science and Metabolism Unit, Division of Intramural Research, Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, Bethesda, MD, United States.,Section of Sensory Science and Metabolism, Division of Intramural Research, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Institute of Nursing Research, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Peter Manza
- Laboratory of Neuroimaging, Department of Health and Human Services, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Marquis Chapman
- Section of Sensory Science and Metabolism Unit, Division of Intramural Research, Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Nafisa Nawal
- Section of Sensory Science and Metabolism Unit, Division of Intramural Research, Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Erin Biesecker
- Section of Sensory Science and Metabolism Unit, Division of Intramural Research, Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Katherine McPherson
- Section of Sensory Science and Metabolism Unit, Division of Intramural Research, Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Evan Dennis
- Section of Sensory Science and Metabolism Unit, Division of Intramural Research, Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Allison Johnson
- Section of Sensory Science and Metabolism Unit, Division of Intramural Research, Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Nora D Volkow
- Laboratory of Neuroimaging, Department of Health and Human Services, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Paule V Joseph
- Section of Sensory Science and Metabolism Unit, Division of Intramural Research, Department of Health and Human Services, National Institutes of Health, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, Bethesda, MD, United States.,Section of Sensory Science and Metabolism, Division of Intramural Research, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, National Institute of Nursing Research, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
| |
Collapse
|
44
|
Inflammation Subtypes and Translating Inflammation-Related Genetic Findings in Schizophrenia and Related Psychoses: A Perspective on Pathways for Treatment Stratification and Novel Therapies. Harv Rev Psychiatry 2022; 30:59-70. [PMID: 34995036 PMCID: PMC8746916 DOI: 10.1097/hrp.0000000000000321] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Dysregulation of immunological and inflammatory processes is frequently observed in psychotic disorders. Numerous studies have examined the complex components of innate and adaptive immune processes in schizophrenia and related psychoses. Elevated inflammation in these conditions is related to neurobiological phenotypes and associated with both genetics and environmental exposures. Recent studies have utilized multivariate cytokine approaches to identify what appears to be a subset of individuals with elevated inflammation. The degree to which these findings represent a general process of dysregulated inflammation or whether there are more refined subtypes remains unclear. Brain-imaging studies have attempted to establish the link between peripheral inflammation and gray matter disruption, white matter abnormalities, and neuropsychological phenotypes. However, the interplay between peripheral inflammation and neuroinflammation, as well as the consequences of this interplay, in the context of psychosis remains unclear and requires further investigation. This Perspectives article reviews the following elements of immune dysregulation and its clinical and therapeutic implications: (1) evidence supporting inflammation and immune dysregulation in schizophrenia and related psychoses; (2) recent advances in approaches to characterizing subgroups of patients with elevated inflammation; (3) relationships between peripheral inflammation and brain-imaging indicators of neuroinflammation; (4) convergence of large-scale genetic findings and peripheral inflammation findings; and (5) therapeutic implications: anti-inflammation interventions leveraging genetic findings for drug discovery and repurposing. We offer perspectives and examples of how multiomics technologies may be useful for constructing and studying immunogenetic signatures. Advancing research in this area will facilitate biomarker discovery, disease subtyping, and the development of etiological treatments for immune dysregulation in psychosis.
Collapse
|
45
|
Puvogel S, Alsema A, Kracht L, Webster MJ, Weickert CS, Sommer IEC, Eggen BJL. Single-nucleus RNA sequencing of midbrain blood-brain barrier cells in schizophrenia reveals subtle transcriptional changes with overall preservation of cellular proportions and phenotypes. Mol Psychiatry 2022; 27:4731-4740. [PMID: 36192459 PMCID: PMC9734060 DOI: 10.1038/s41380-022-01796-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/21/2022] [Revised: 09/02/2022] [Accepted: 09/09/2022] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
The midbrain is an extensively studied brain region in schizophrenia, in view of its reported dopamine pathophysiology and neuroimmune changes associated with this disease. Besides the dopaminergic system, the midbrain contains other cell types that may be involved in schizophrenia pathophysiology. The neurovascular hypothesis of schizophrenia postulates that both the neurovasculature structure and the functioning of the blood-brain barrier (BBB) are compromised in schizophrenia. In the present study, potential alteration in the BBB of patients with schizophrenia was investigated by single-nucleus RNA sequencing of post-mortem midbrain tissue (15 schizophrenia cases and 14 matched controls). We did not identify changes in the relative abundance of the major BBB cell types, nor in the sub-populations, associated with schizophrenia. However, we identified 14 differentially expressed genes in the cells of the BBB in schizophrenia as compared to controls, including genes that have previously been related to schizophrenia, such as FOXP2 and PDE4D. These transcriptional changes were limited to the ependymal cells and pericytes, suggesting that the cells of the BBB are not broadly affected in schizophrenia.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sofía Puvogel
- Department of Biomedical Sciences of Cells and Systems, section Cognitive Neuroscience, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands. .,Department of Biomedical Sciences of Cells and Systems, section Molecular Neurobiology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands.
| | - Astrid Alsema
- grid.4494.d0000 0000 9558 4598Department of Biomedical Sciences of Cells and Systems, section Molecular Neurobiology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Laura Kracht
- grid.4494.d0000 0000 9558 4598Department of Biomedical Sciences of Cells and Systems, section Molecular Neurobiology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
| | - Maree J. Webster
- grid.453353.70000 0004 0473 2858Laboratory of Brain Research, Stanley Medical Research Institute, Rockville, MD USA
| | - Cynthia Shannon Weickert
- grid.250407.40000 0000 8900 8842Schizophrenia Research Laboratory, Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW Australia ,grid.1005.40000 0004 4902 0432School of Psychiatry, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW Australia ,grid.411023.50000 0000 9159 4457Department of Neuroscience and Physiology, Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY USA
| | - Iris E. C. Sommer
- grid.4494.d0000 0000 9558 4598Department of Biomedical Sciences of Cells and Systems, section Cognitive Neuroscience, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands ,grid.7692.a0000000090126352Department of Psychiatry, Brain Center Rudolf Magnus, University Medical Centre Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Bart J. L. Eggen
- grid.4494.d0000 0000 9558 4598Department of Biomedical Sciences of Cells and Systems, section Molecular Neurobiology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, The Netherlands
| |
Collapse
|
46
|
North HF, Weissleder C, Fullerton JM, Sager R, Webster MJ, Weickert CS. A schizophrenia subgroup with elevated inflammation displays reduced microglia, increased peripheral immune cell and altered neurogenesis marker gene expression in the subependymal zone. Transl Psychiatry 2021; 11:635. [PMID: 34911938 PMCID: PMC8674325 DOI: 10.1038/s41398-021-01742-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2020] [Revised: 09/18/2021] [Accepted: 10/01/2021] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Inflammation regulates neurogenesis, and the brains of patients with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder have reduced expression of neurogenesis markers in the subependymal zone (SEZ), the birthplace of inhibitory interneurons. Inflammation is associated with cortical interneuron deficits, but the relationship between inflammation and reduced neurogenesis in schizophrenia and bipolar disorder remains unexplored. Therefore, we investigated inflammation in the SEZ by defining those with low and high levels of inflammation using cluster analysis of IL6, IL6R, IL1R1 and SERPINA3 gene expression in 32 controls, 32 schizophrenia and 29 bipolar disorder cases. We then determined whether mRNAs for markers of glia, immune cells and neurogenesis varied with inflammation. A significantly greater proportion of schizophrenia (37%) and bipolar disorder cases (32%) were in high inflammation subgroups compared to controls (10%, p < 0.05). Across the high inflammation subgroups of psychiatric disorders, mRNAs of markers for phagocytic microglia were reduced (P2RY12, P2RY13), while mRNAs of markers for perivascular macrophages (CD163), pro-inflammatory macrophages (CD64), monocytes (CD14), natural killer cells (FCGR3A) and adhesion molecules (ICAM1) were increased. Specific to high inflammation schizophrenia, quiescent stem cell marker mRNA (GFAPD) was reduced, whereas neuronal progenitor (ASCL1) and immature neuron marker mRNAs (DCX) were decreased compared to low inflammation control and schizophrenia subgroups. Thus, a heightened state of inflammation may dampen microglial response and recruit peripheral immune cells in psychiatric disorders. The findings elucidate differential neurogenic responses to inflammation within psychiatric disorders and highlight that inflammation may impair neuronal differentiation in the SEZ in schizophrenia.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Hayley F North
- Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW, Australia
- School of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, 2052, Australia
| | | | - Janice M Fullerton
- Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW, Australia
- School of Medical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, 2052, Australia
| | - Rachel Sager
- Department of Neuroscience and Physiology, Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, USA
| | - Maree J Webster
- Laboratory of Brain Research, Stanley Medical Research Institute, 9800 Medical Center Drive, Rockville, MD, USA
| | - Cynthia Shannon Weickert
- Neuroscience Research Australia, Sydney, NSW, Australia.
- School of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of New South Wales, Sydney, NSW, 2052, Australia.
- Department of Neuroscience and Physiology, Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
47
|
Astrocytes in Neuropsychiatric Disorders: A Review of Postmortem Evidence. ADVANCES IN NEUROBIOLOGY 2021; 26:153-172. [PMID: 34888835 DOI: 10.1007/978-3-030-77375-5_8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Glial cell types in the central nervous system (CNS) include microglia, oligodendrocytes and the most diverse type, astrocytes. Clinical and experimental evidence suggest critical roles for astrocytes in the pathogenesis of CNS disease. Here, we summarize the extensive morphological heterogeneity and physiological properties of different astrocyte subtypes. We review postmortem studies, discussing astrocyte-related changes found in the brain in subjects diagnosed with the neuropsychiatric disorders schizophrenia, major depressive disorder and bipolar disorder. Finally, we discuss the potential effects of psychotropic medication on these findings. In summary, postmortem studies highlight that the morphology of astrocytes and the expression of functionally important astrocyte markers are altered in the brain in neuropsychiatric disorders and may play a role in the pathophysiology of these serious mental illnesses.
Collapse
|
48
|
Oh H, Goehring J, Rajkumar R, Besecker M, Zhou S, DeVylder JE. COVID-19 dimensions and psychotic experiences among US college students: Findings from the Healthy Mind Study 2020. Schizophr Res 2021; 237:148-152. [PMID: 34534946 PMCID: PMC8438539 DOI: 10.1016/j.schres.2021.09.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2021] [Revised: 08/29/2021] [Accepted: 09/05/2021] [Indexed: 01/27/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The COVID-19 pandemic has caused tremendous changes in daily living, which may be related to mental health problems, including psychotic experiences, though research has only begun to assess these associations. METHODS We analyzed data from the Healthy Minds Survey (Fall Semester Cohort 2020), which is a non-probability sample of students attending one of 36 universities in the United States, who completed an online survey during the COVID-19 pandemic (September-December 2020). We used multivariable logistic regression to examine the associations between several COVID-19 dimensions (anxiety, discrimination, financial distress, infection, illness of loved one, death of loved one, caregiving) and 12-month psychotic experiences, adjusting for age, gender, race/ethnicity, and international student status. RESULTS Each individual COVID-19 dimension was significantly associated with greater odds of having 12-month psychotic experiences, with the exception of being a caregiver. When accounting for all COVID-19 dimensions simultaneously in the same model, only COVID-19 related anxiety, financial distress, and infection were associated with psychotic experiences. CONCLUSION COVID-19 dimensions were linked to psychotic experiences among university students, which may also apply to the larger population. This can potentially inform assessment and treatment during the pandemic.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Hans Oh
- Suzanne Dworak Peck School of Social Work, University of Southern California, 1149 Hill St Suite 1422, Los Angeles, CA 90015, United States of America.
| | - Jessica Goehring
- Suzanne Dworak Peck School of Social Work, University of Southern California, 1149 Hill St Suite 1422, Los Angeles, CA 90015, United States of America
| | - Ravi Rajkumar
- Jawaharlal Institute of Postgraduate Medical Education and Research, India
| | - Megan Besecker
- Suzanne Dworak Peck School of Social Work, University of Southern California, 1149 Hill St Suite 1422, Los Angeles, CA 90015, United States of America
| | - Sasha Zhou
- Department of Public Health, Wayne State University, United States of America
| | - Jordan E. DeVylder
- Fordham University, Graduate School of Social Service, United States of America
| |
Collapse
|
49
|
Reduced adult neurogenesis is associated with increased macrophages in the subependymal zone in schizophrenia. Mol Psychiatry 2021; 26:6880-6895. [PMID: 34059796 DOI: 10.1038/s41380-021-01149-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/10/2020] [Revised: 04/17/2021] [Accepted: 04/26/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Neural stem cells in the human subependymal zone (SEZ) generate neuronal progenitor cells that can differentiate and integrate as inhibitory interneurons into cortical and subcortical brain regions; yet the extent of adult neurogenesis remains unexplored in schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. We verified the existence of neurogenesis across the lifespan by chartering transcriptional alterations (2 days-103 years, n = 70) and identifying cells indicative of different stages of neurogenesis in the human SEZ. Expression of most neural stem and neuronal progenitor cell markers decreased during the first postnatal years and remained stable from childhood into ageing. We next discovered reduced neural stem and neuronal progenitor cell marker expression in the adult SEZ in schizophrenia and bipolar disorder compared to controls (n = 29-32 per group). RNA sequencing identified increased expression of the macrophage marker CD163 as the most significant molecular change in schizophrenia. CD163+ macrophages, which were localised along blood vessels and in the parenchyma within 10 µm of neural stem and progenitor cells, had increased density in schizophrenia but not in bipolar disorder. Macrophage marker expression negatively correlated with neuronal progenitor marker expression in schizophrenia but not in controls or bipolar disorder. Reduced neurogenesis and increased macrophage marker expression were also associated with polygenic risk for schizophrenia. Our results support that the human SEZ retains the capacity to generate neuronal progenitor cells throughout life, although this capacity is limited in schizophrenia and bipolar disorder. The increase in macrophages in schizophrenia but not in bipolar disorder indicates that immune cells may impair neurogenesis in the adult SEZ in a disease-specific manner.
Collapse
|
50
|
Murphy CE, Walker AK, Weickert CS. Neuroinflammation in schizophrenia: the role of nuclear factor kappa B. Transl Psychiatry 2021; 11:528. [PMID: 34650030 PMCID: PMC8516884 DOI: 10.1038/s41398-021-01607-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/19/2021] [Revised: 08/22/2021] [Accepted: 09/03/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Neuroinflammation, particularly in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, is well-established in a subset of people with schizophrenia, with significant increases in inflammatory markers including several cytokines. Yet the cause(s) of cortical inflammation in schizophrenia remains unknown. Clues as to potential microenvironmental triggers and/or intracellular deficits in immunoregulation may be gleaned from looking further upstream of effector immune molecules to transcription factors that control inflammatory gene expression. Here, we focus on the 'master immune regulator' nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) and review evidence in support of NF-κB dysregulation causing or contributing to neuroinflammation in patients. We discuss the utility of 'immune biotyping' as a tool to analyse immune-related transcripts and proteins in patient tissue, and the insights into cortical NF-κB in schizophrenia revealed by immune biotyping compared to studies treating patients as a single, homogenous group. Though the ubiquitous nature of NF-κB presents several hurdles for drug development, targeting this key immunoregulator with novel or repurposed therapeutics in schizophrenia is a relatively underexplored area that could aid in reducing symptoms of patients with active neuroinflammation.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Caitlin E. Murphy
- grid.250407.40000 0000 8900 8842Neuroscience Research Australia, Randwick, NSW 2031 Australia
| | - Adam K. Walker
- grid.250407.40000 0000 8900 8842Neuroscience Research Australia, Randwick, NSW 2031 Australia ,grid.1005.40000 0004 4902 0432School of Psychiatry, University of New South Wales, Randwick, NSW 2031 Australia ,grid.1002.30000 0004 1936 7857Drug Discovery Biology Theme, Monash Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Monash University, Parkville, VIC 3052 Australia
| | - Cynthia Shannon Weickert
- Neuroscience Research Australia, Randwick, NSW, 2031, Australia. .,School of Psychiatry, University of New South Wales, Randwick, NSW, 2031, Australia. .,Department of Neuroscience and Physiology, Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY, 13210, USA.
| |
Collapse
|