Aggrecan and chondroitin-6-sulfate abnormalities in schizophrenia and bipolar disorder: a postmortem study on the amygdala.

ABSTRACT: Perineuronal nets (PNNs) are specialized extracellular matrix aggregates surrounding distinct neuronal populations and regulating synaptic functions and plasticity. Previous findings showed robust PNN decreases in amygdala, entorhinal cortex and prefrontal cortex of subjects with schizophrenia (SZ), but not bipolar disorder (BD). These studies were carried out using a chondroitin sulfate proteoglycan (CSPG) lectin marker. Here, we tested the hypothesis that the CSPG aggrecan, and 6-sulfated chondroitin sulfate (CS-6) chains highly represented in aggrecan, may contribute to these abnormalities. Antibodies against aggrecan and CS-6 (3B3 and CS56) were used in the amygdala of healthy control, SZ and BD subjects. In controls, aggrecan immunoreactivity (IR) was observed in PNNs and glial cells.

SUBMITTER: Pantazopoulos H 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4312825 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature