title: Oxidative Stress and DNA Damage in Untreated First-Episode Psychosis in Adolescents.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Oxidative stress has been reported to play a role in the psychopathology of schizophrenia, though only a few studies have investigated the relationship between early-onset schizophrenia and oxidative stress. The aim of the present study is to evaluate the level of oxidative stress and the presence of DNA damage in first-episode psychosis (FEP) in adolescents.
  
  
  METHODS
  This study was conducted in the Department of Child Psychiatry of the Dicle University Hospital. It included 20 adolescent patients (age 11-17 years) with psychosis (acute psychosis, schizophreniform disorder, or schizophrenia) according to DSM-IV criteria who had received no previous psychiatric therapy (patient group) and 20 age/gender-matched healthy adolescents (control group). Structured psychiatric interviews [Kiddie Schedule for Affective Disorders and Schizophrenia, Present and Lifetime Version (K-SADS-PL) and Positive and Negative Symptom Scale (PANSS)] were conducted on the patients, and the Clinical Global Impressions (CGI) scale was used to evaluate the severity of disease. Glutathione peroxidase (GPx), superoxide dismutase (SOD), coenzyme Q (CoQ), and 8-hydroxy-2-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG) levels were determined using the ELISA method and commercial ELISA kits.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The mean age was 14.5 ± 1.6 years in the FEP group (male-to-female ratio: 8/12) and 14.4 ± 1.5 years in the control group (male-to-female ratio: 8/12). There were no differences between the patient and control groups in terms of SOD, GPx, or 8-OHdG values (p > 0.05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study on DNA damage and oxidative stress in FEP in adolescents had a small sample size, and our data suggest that oxidative stress is associated with a chronic disease course rather than being an early sign of early-onset schizophrenia.
authors.affiliation: Department of Child Psychiatry, Medical School, Dicle University, Diyarbakx0131;r, Turkey.
authors.forename: Şeref
authors.initials: Ş
authors.lastname: Şimşek
authors.forename: Salih
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Gençoğlan
authors.forename: Tuğba
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Yüksel
authors.forename: İbrahim
authors.initials: İ
authors.lastname: Kaplan
authors.forename: Rümeysa
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Alaca
authors.forename: Hüseyin
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Aktaş
mesh_terms: D000080242:8-Hydroxy-2'-Deoxyguanosine; D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D004249:DNA Damage / Q000502:physiology*; D003849:Deoxyguanosine / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000378:metabolism; D039721:Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders; D004797:Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay; D005260:Female; D005979:Glutathione Peroxidase / Q000378:metabolism; D006801:Humans; D007406:Interview, Psychological; D008297:Male; D018384:Oxidative Stress / Q000502:physiology*; D011569:Psychiatric Status Rating Scales; D011618:Psychotic Disorders / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism*; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D013482:Superoxide Dismutase / Q000378:metabolism; D014451:Ubiquinone / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D014451:Ubiquinone; D000080242:8-Hydroxy-2'-Deoxyguanosine; D005979:Glutathione Peroxidase; D013482:Superoxide Dismutase; D003849:Deoxyguanosine