GWAS, cytomegalovirus infection, and schizophrenia.

ABSTRACT: In recent years good progress has been made in uncovering the genetic underpinnings of schizophrenia. Even so, as a polygenic disorder, schizophrenia has a complex etiology that is far from understood. Meanwhile data are being collected enabling the study of interactions between genes and the environment. A confluence of data from genetic and environmental exposure studies points to the role of infections and immunity in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia. In a recent study by Børglum et al., a single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in the gene CTNNA3 was identified that may provide clues to gene-environment interactions. The carriers of the minor allele for the SNP had a 5 fold risk of later developing schizophrenia if their mothers were CMV positive, while the children not carrying the a

SUBMITTER: Grove J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4316203 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature