title: Does subtle disturbance of neuronal migration contribute to schizophrenia and other neurodevelopmental disorders? Potential genetic mechanisms with possible treatment implications.
abstract: Pathways associated with genes that regulate neuronal migration by influencing the function of microtubules in the developing fetal brain may be interfered with as part of the "first-hit" of schizophrenia. In the fully-developed brain, these same pathways that impact microtubule function mediate at least some aspects of experience-dependent plasticity, which may also be impaired in schizophrenia. Whereas severe presentations of "lissencephaly" are associated with mutations and deletions of DISC1, LIS1 and the gene for the very low-density lipoprotein receptor, genetic variations of these loci are good candidate schizophrenia genes. Importantly, in the fully-developed brain, there is a possibility that at least some of the consequences of these disturbed genetic pathways that adversely affect microtubule function may be "bypassed" or mitigated.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Norfolk, VA, USA. deutscsi@evms.edu
authors.forename: Stephen I
authors.initials: SI
authors.lastname: Deutsch
authors.forename: Jessica A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Burket
authors.forename: Elionora
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Katz
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D015816:Cell Adhesion Molecules, Neuronal / Q000235:genetics; D002465:Cell Movement / Q000235:genetics*; D016326:Extracellular Matrix Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D054082:Lissencephaly / Q000235:genetics / Q000503:physiopathology; D008869:Microtubule-Associated Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D009474:Neurons / Q000502:physiology*; D000091042:Reelin Protein; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000235:genetics* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D012697:Serine Endopeptidases / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D015816:Cell Adhesion Molecules, Neuronal; C412476:DISC1 protein, human; D016326:Extracellular Matrix Proteins; D008869:Microtubule-Associated Proteins; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins; D000091042:Reelin Protein; D012697:Serine Endopeptidases