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Post by Admin on Feb 1, 2016 16:05:40 GMT -4
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Post by Eme Umana on Feb 3, 2016 14:47:40 GMT -4
Thanks to Steven McCarroll and Beth Steven on the results of their study that have provided researchers with the first biological handle of Schizophrenia. By using advanced statistical methods to analyze genome. Scientists have had success in understanding the causes of schizophrenia, understanding it more means understanding the causes, knowing the causes means building up a prevention and also building up a drug to help further .The drugs that were there before and now, have only succeeded in reducing symptoms but not a cure.... This new findings doesn't mean a cure, it means it could lead to a cure. Just like its mentioned in the article with the at - risk genetic profile once freshen out completely they will be discovery of biomarkers to clarify prognosis.
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Post by Tuong Nguyen on Feb 3, 2016 16:39:49 GMT -4
The article is interesting in a way that it answers why schizophrenia increase the risk if close relatives has it. In addition why the enlargement of cerebral ventricle and decreasing the cortical volume. This is all due to an increase in C4 protein which led to pruning. It is an important step in understanding schizophrenia and possibly a closer step in developing an actual cure. We’ve seen some cases with schizophrenia in this office and some extreme form can be heart breaking. My son in law has a friend with schizophrenia and it is difficult for his parents to deal with his symptoms. He constantly experiencing delusions/hallucinations that the TV tell him to kill his parents. The current drugs does help him with his symptoms but it also cause other risks like constant jerking(TD) and very slow in thinking and talking. People who meet him would think that he’s crazy and try to avoid him.
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Post by Pooja Bendala on Feb 3, 2016 18:30:56 GMT -4
This article is profound in its implications for schizophrenia. It is the first step towards not just understanding the symptomatic picture, but the underlying pathogenesis to how the disease can manifest. Schizophrenia has been attributed to genetic predisposition, as well as environmental factors, however it seems there is a much more complex cause in proteins known as C4 (A-B). Through scientific research it has been found that these proteins lead to synaptic pruning which diminishes the neural connections formed in the pre-frontal cortex. This area has often shown to be thin in patients with schizophrenia. Additionally this area of the brain is in control of thinking processes and higher functioning order that is blunted in schizophrenic patients. While there are numerous therapies that can stabilize or control symptoms of schizophrenia this can have a huge implication in the future as gene therapy may be possible for adolescents and young adults from preventing rapid synaptic pruning and thus rapid progression to Schizophrenia. It will be interesting to see how this research is further developed and if there can a better prognostic tool which can tell us if someone will have schizophrenia before manifestation of symptoms occur.
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Post by Esiet Udota on Feb 4, 2016 7:51:07 GMT -4
Schizophrenia is a chronic mental disorder with periods of psychosis. It involves disturbed behavior and thought pattern with a decline in functioning that lasts greater than 6 months. One of the discoveries is on a phenomenon in the brain known as synaptic pruning, which sheds away weak or redundant neuron connections as they mature. A suggestion by this research is that those carrying the genes that intensify this pruning are at greater risk of developing schizophrenia than those without. I believe that given the knowledge of the biological cause, as depicted in this article, would allow proper treatment and not a blunting of some of the symptoms associated with the disorder. It’s nice to know that research is never ending, as new research grounds are gaining height to help alleviate this problematic state of the mind.
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Post by Denise Ellis on Feb 4, 2016 8:26:24 GMT -4
Years ago, I must admit that I once viewed schizophrenia as a disorder of crazy people. Schizophrenia was once associated with persons who were demon possessed,evil, unintelligent,doped with drugs,or simply "out of their mind." Today, scientists and advances in medicine have provided us with a broader understanding of schizophrenia along with treatments for this disease which afflicts millions of Americans. Undoubtedly, schizophrenia is a problem that people face across all nationalities. My Haitian neighbor had an 18 year old son who was institutionalized because of symptoms associated with schizophrenia. Dr. Nolan in the story Beautiful Mind, demonstrates how the mind of a schizophrenic patient functions during periods of psychosis. Understanding the relationship between genetics and symptoms of this disease will hopefully bring about better treatment modalities. The work done by present researchers in this article serves to elucidate the organic nature of the disease which further dispels former myths of the origin of schizophrenia.
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Post by Georgiana Massad on Feb 4, 2016 10:18:47 GMT -4
Although it may be only "one step in a journey of a thousand miles," in the words of a UCSF psychiatry professor, this recent discovery in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia is valuable. The scariest part about any disease is not understanding its course. Because schizophrenia affects 1 in 100 people and incurs such a significant social and economic burden, I think it's an incredibly important area of research. Because the human brain is so complex and schizophrenia is highly multifactorial, we may never able to fully elucidate its cause or discover a worthwhile method of genetic screening. However, the more we discover, the more we can educate patients and their families and achieve the best outcomes.
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Post by Randy Lindgren on Feb 4, 2016 10:46:38 GMT -4
I think it is very important that we continue to research Schizophrenia along with the other similar disorders to better understand the pathogenesis which will guide future therapy and medication remedies to help these people who suffer from such a horrible condition. The delusions, hallucinations, psychosis and other positive symptoms that can accompany Schizophrenia can be somewhat controlled with medications, but still the negative symptoms usually persist and affect the patients life and level of functioning. I hope that one day we can better understand Schizophrenia and develop new treatment for people who are suffering from this disease.
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Post by unkown on Feb 4, 2016 10:49:32 GMT -4
This article demonstrates a breakthrough in the understanding of the pathogenesis of schizophrenia. Scientists discovered that certain proteins are involved in the pruning process during which neural connections are shed in adolescence. The fact that schizophrenia is a disorder that is not very understood makes this finding quite remarkable. Seeing my first patient with schizophrenia really made me change how I felt about the condition. It is a debilitating disease that begins in adolescence which makes its effects so difficult to digest. Current treatments have an asortment of side effects and long term therapy can lead to wide range of movement disorders. Scientists still have a lot to learn in regards to these proteins and research to target these proteins may lead to new and emerging treatments.
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Post by Rahim Mangalji on Feb 4, 2016 11:33:33 GMT -4
The first step in developing any sort of efficacious treatment is understanding at a base level of foundation. The breakthrough that focuses on pruning, the process of shedding neural connection in development, gives us a focus point, instead of taking a shot in the dark. With understanding that pruning is the foundation, we can start uncovering more with regards to when, how, and what conditions can lead to excessive pruning, such as that in Schizophrenia. Along with finding out pruning, it was extremely optimistic that we found the C4 gene, to allow us to take a look on the more genetic and molecular level. Although we are quite a ways away from figuring out Schizophrenia and finding a more acceptable treatment to mitigate the effects of Schizophrenia, this is certainly a positive step in the right direction.
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Post by Komaldeep Singh on Feb 4, 2016 11:42:21 GMT -4
Schizophrenia is a mental disorder that can destroy many lives. Due to its early adolescence onset, it can leave many young men and women with a stunted outlook on life. Thanks to the research by Steven McCarroll and Beth Stevens we know the reason for adolescence onset correlates with the increased synaptic pruning which occurs in the pre-frontal cortex during the adolescence and early adulthood stages of life. Patients who are carriers of genes that accelerate or intensify the pruning process are pre-disposed to developing schizophrenia. This finding can be confirmed because patients of schizophrenia have smaller pre-frontal cortex compared to normal patients.
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Post by Peter Wahba on Feb 4, 2016 12:08:22 GMT -4
I think this article does a good job of highlighting that people with schizophrenia are being treated for symptoms and that there is good research pointing to a biological origin of the disease. This is great for people as it could possibly lead to genetic testing that can identify a potential risk factor for developing schizophrenia. Genetic testing can be a great tool to use in order to inform people who have family history, for example, of schizophrenia and let them know what their chances are for developing the disease. It is also great in early detection as there are people who have been shown to exhibit neurological pruning at a faster rate and whose brains show signs of developing schizophrenia during adolescence. It also helps with predicting a possible outcome and preparing people at risk and their families of what life with schizophrenia may be like. However, as there are many other factors that can contribute to schizophrenia this research should not be looked at as a definitive marker for someone developing schizophrenia. This is exciting research and hopefully it is continued along with research into other risk factors such as environmental, nutritional, etc.
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Post by Tangela Derogene on Feb 4, 2016 12:29:46 GMT -4
The work Dr. McCarroll and his team has done is a major leap in the right direction to help in understanding of the pathogenesis of schizophrenia. It seems to be yet another example of a disease in which both genetic and environmental factors play in a key role. The deeper scientist understand the effects of the C4 protein on pruning, the closer the community will get to developing the most appropriate medications that can not only manage the side effects of schizophrenia but the underlying cause. This research can bring real change in the typical schizophrenic care and may lead to positive life altering for improvements for schizophrenic patients and the community.
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Post by Diana Khaw on Feb 4, 2016 13:06:33 GMT -4
This article on schizophrenia is interesting. There is so much to learn from imaging, such as changes from enlarged ventricle and cortical atrophy, and gene studies, to help aid in maintenance and treatment. It was fascinating to discover that C4-A gene causes pruning at a faster rate leading to schizophrenia. The pruning process during neural connections are shed in adolescence. It’s unfortunate for an adolescence to have the gene and get symptoms early on. It’s scary that we don’t’ fully understand this disease. And treatments all have side effects, even with atypical antipsychotics. Hopefully through more research, we can find treatments with fewer side effects for the patients, especially the ones diagnosed in early adolescences.
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Post by Daniel Asher on Feb 4, 2016 13:21:26 GMT -4
Researchers have now correlated specific genes and proteins to an increased risk of developing schizophrenia. It will be interesting to see the approach to singling out the specific protein causing the abnormal neuronal pruning and making it a target for medicine. The protein c4-a and c4-B have to be extremely similar molecular compounds making it extremely difficult for medication to target only C4-A and not C4-B. Also there has to be some unknown underlying consequences of anything that would eliminate c4-A. Accereelated or intensified pruning has to be better than little or no pruning. So it will interesting to see how researchers go about targeting this protein.
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