Schizophrenia is a mental disorder defined by the disruption of an individual’s comprehension of reality, emotion, and mental thought processes that interfere with daily life functioning. The most defining characteristic is the development of psychosis in the form of hallucinations or delusions that distort one’s perception of the world. These hallucinations are commonly auditory, but can extend through other senses such as smell, touch, or vision. Behavioral symptoms include aggressive actions, flattening of emotions, self-harm, and withdrawal from social relationships. Changes in speech patterns can occur in the form of disorganized thinking or incomprehensible dialogue.
The onset of schizophrenia is also influenced by multiple factors. Schizophrenia does have environmental and hereditary components. A combination of genes passed down from one generation to the next and lifestyle choices can greatly influence one’s susceptibility to develop this disorder. Genetic risk factors are difficult to target as they are constructed within our genome and it's defined as a multi-gene disorder. Environmental factors such as drug abuse or extreme stressors may aggravate light cases of schizophrenia to become more severe.However, not only is the onset of schizophrenia composed of multiple components, but the pathology seems to construct an even greater complexity that is limiting the development of effective cellular and behavioral cures. Pathological research in the cases of schizophrenia have suggested that the hyperactivity of the dopamine neurotransmitter results in this condition. Within the dopamine reward pathway, overactive signal transductions in the mesolimbic and mesocortical pathways account for the symptoms seen in this mental disorder. In theory, potential cures have been directed towards the use of antipsychotics that serve as dopamine antagonists that block their functioning. However, this is currently a temporary treatment that can help control schizophrenia, but not cure it completely. Other methods of improving condition may be seen through supportive therapies that help an individual manage their symptoms. Other studies have found significant reduction in cortical grey matter volumes in the brains of schizophrenic patients, also suggesting this may be a potential cause in proper functioning. A variety of changes occurring at the molecular scale demonstrate that this mental disorder consists of many parts that must be accounted for in order to develop any kind of permanent cure.
In Dr. Wang’s research, he focused on the pathophysiology of schizophrenia that would provide an explanation for the abnormal behaviors performed by people affected by this disorder. Specifically, he observed how thalamic nuclei degradation affected cognition and behavior in schizophrenic patients. Thalamic nuclei are responsible for carrying sensory and motor signals that govern our conscious activity. Impairments in these areas may account for the clinical aspects of schizophrenia observed in the 20 patients that were a part of the longitudinal study where thalamic nuclei morphology was studied. Dr. Wang’s findings demonstrated a correlation between thalamic deterioration and cortical decline, but they were limited in their conclusion as there was no pattern identified with changes in behavior. Results suggested that although thalamic nuclei degradation was apparent in a schizophrenic brain, it was not the cause of behavioral abnormalities. This exemplified the notion that schizophrenia is significantly complex in nature as there may be a combination of pathological traits that construct the symptoms we can physically observe.
In the Scientific American article, “Brain’s “Brakes” Suppress Unwanted Thoughts”, Anderson and his colleagues at McGill University conducted a new research project that presented a new approach to target behavioral symptoms of schizophrenia. He studied the pathology of schizophrenia in regards to brain circuits that control our cognition and behaviors. The proposed hypothesis was psychosis in the form of hallucinations may arise from defects in mechanisms of the brain that block thoughts. Anderson focused on the activity of the prefrontal cortex, functions in cognition, personality formation, and decision-making. He also took an unusual approach and also observed the hippocampus, responsible for memory formation and storage. The hippocampus region was observed to show increased activation in conjunction with psychosis to produce distorted thought patterns. For the methodology, Anderson recruited healthy participants to learn pairs of words. Instead of recruiting subjects with schizophrenia, he wanted to observe the mechanisms that pertain to thought in a normal functioning brain to see how the way we think is naturally processed. The subjects were given pairs of words in which one was presented, and they had to recall or suppress the associated word. During periods of suppression, Anderson observed an increase in activity in the prefrontal cortex and a decrease in activity in the hippocampus. In addition, Anderson utilized magnetic resonance spectroscopy and observed that measures of GABA levels within the hippocampus was a good indicator of a subject’s ability to suppress their thoughts. GABA serves as an inhibitory neurotransmitter, so having increased levels suggest that individuals can have better control over their thoughts and ultimately their behavior. In a sense, the activation of the prefrontal cortex served as a “brake pedal” to suppress hippocampus, while GABA served as how intensely the brake pedal is pressed to control the degree of suppression of thoughts. Moreover, this can also help those who suffer from PTSD as well by being able to suppress the triggering of intense flashbacks of traumatic events.
Intrusive thoughts are defined as unwanted thoughts that come to mind that one finds to be mentally upsetting. We do not choose to recall these thoughts, but they appear forcefully without our consent. This is the hallmark of schizophrenia as seen in hallucations. Individuals believe to visibly see their thoughts not brought about under their control, resulting in an influence in the manner of how they behave to these false perceptions. With the ability to have increased control over suppressing thoughts, individuals suffering from schizophrenia may be able to utilize GABA- enhancing drugs. These can presumably filter out hallucinations and delusions to modify behaviors in accordance to reality. In our current generation, mental illnesses are a growing problem that must be dealt with immediately and effectively as they only seem to worsen as time progresses. Hopefully, the breakthrough of Anderson’s research in the field of molecular neuroscience provided a connection between brain mechanisms and cognitive behavior that may serve as a potential treatment that targets the heart of schizophrenia.
Mental Health Information : Schizophrenia. Retrieved February 21, 2019, from https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/topics/schizophrenia/index.shtml
Makin, S. (2018, April 01). Brain's "Brakes" Suppress Unwanted Thoughts . Retrieved February 21, 2019, from https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/brain-rsquo-s-ldquo-brakes-rdquo-suppress-unwanted-thoughts
No comments:
Post a Comment