BioCentury
ARTICLE | Targets & Mechanisms

Cleaving Schizophrenia

July 31, 2008 7:00 AM UTC

A study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences points to g-secretase, a major Alzheimer's disease target, as a new player in schizophrenia.1 Although AD work has focused on g-secretase antagonists, agonists of the brain enzyme could have applications in schizophrenia if questions about timing and specificity can be answered.

Historically, the proteins that influence schizophrenia have been hard to identify, and, as a result, marketed therapies are only a stop-gap for psychosis. The mouse and cell-culture studies reported in PNASandconducted by a team led by Bart De Strooper, professor of human genetics at the University of Leuven, provide new insights into the molecular mechanisms underlying schizophrenia...