Schizophrenia is one of the most serious psychiatric disorders, and there are still many gaps in knowledge about the mechanisms underlying it. Research by the IRCCS Neuromed of Pozzilli (IS) has now identified specific metabolic alterations associated with this pathology, offering new perspectives towards its understanding. The research, published in the scientific journal Schizophrenia, focused on the analysis of a complex series of chemical reactions, the so-called “kynurenine pathway”. In particular, by analyzing samples of autopsy human brains, it was seen that individuals suffering from schizophrenia had significant variations in the levels of some metabolites compared to healthy people (controls). “Our results – says Dr. Giovanna D’Errico, IRCCS Neuromed – indicate specific increases in the levels of almost all metabolites of the kynurenine pathway in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC), a brain region associated with important cognitive functions. We must highlight how these alterations are present independently of factors such as age, sex, duration of the disease or pharmacological treatment, and this suggests that the variations could be intrinsically linked to the schizophrenic pathology perhaps as a consequence of a neuroinflammatory process, rather than to external factors”.
Considering that previous studies have highlighted how some of the metabolites studied can also be measured in the blood, alterations in their levels could become important indicators for the diagnosis of schizophrenia and for monitoring during the course of the disease. “We must also underline – comments Professor Giuseppe Battaglia, Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Sapienza University, Rome – how this research, in addition to providing potential disease indicators, adds important knowledge which may pave the way for further investigations into the possible connection between alterations metabolism of the kynurenine pathway and schizophrenia. The objective is to aim for more targeted and effective therapeutic strategies.”
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