THE PATHOPHYSIOLOGY OF SCHIZOPHRENIA IS BECOMING CLEARER
June 2, 2024 · Posted in B - Clinically Important for Future Consideration, Course of Illness, Neurobiology
David Lewis of U. Pittsburgh showed that the glutamate neurons in the prefrontal cortex of patients with schizophrenia are deficient in the gamma (30-50 Hz) oscillations that are responsible for normal working memory.
Not only are dendrites and spines deficient in these neurons in layer 3 of the cortex, but there is a deficit in parvalbumin GABA inhibitory neurons. The GABA enzyme GAD 67 is lower, producing less inhibition. The frontal neurons are hypoactive and there is less BDNF and oxidative phosphorylation present, yielding decreases in mitochondrial function.
