Two major psychotic illnesses have been found to have a similar genetic cause. Schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, or manic depression affects about 2 per cent of the population.
Two major psychotic illnesses have been found to have a similar genetic cause. Schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, or manic depression affects about 2 per cent of the population.
Dr Sabine Bahn and colleagues from the Department of Psychiatry who published their research in The Lancet (6th September 2003) were surprised to find two very different conditions to have similar genetic causes.
The researchers studied the brains of 15 people who had had schizophrenia, 15 who had had bipolar disorder, and 15 who did not have either disorder. They used sensitive mRNA-based techniques to compare the genes of each group.
The team found that people who suffered from either illness demonstrated a reduced expression of genes responsible for myelin development of the central nervous system. Myelin sheaths cover nerves, providing the efficient transmission of electrical impulses through the nervous system. The faulty genes were linked to the development of oligodendrocyte cells, which make up the sheath tissue, or the development of the myelin itself.
Dr Bahn and her team believe the research provides compelling evidence that both diseases, despite their differences in symptoms, share common genetic causes.
The research was funded by The Stanley Medical Research Institute to support clinical trials for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.
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