Pregnenolone-progesterone-allopregnanolone pathway as a potential therapeutic target in first-episode antipsychotic-naive patients with schizophrenia.

ABSTRACT: Neurosteroids are both endogenous and exogenous steroids that rapidly alter neuronal excitability through interactions with ligand-gated ion channels and other cell surface receptors. They are originated from cholesterol and have important implications for schizophrenia (SZ) pathophysiology and treatment strategies. Specifically, pregnenolone (PREG), progesterone (PROG) and allopregnanolone (ALLO) exhibit similar psychotropic properties. Using enzyme immunoassay, we compared the neurosteroids in PREG downstream pathways in plasma between healthy controls (HC, n = 43) and first-episode antipsychotic-naïve patients with SZ (FEAN-SZ, n = 53) before antipsychotic drug (APD) treatment. Comparisons were also made particularly along PREG-PROG-ALLO pathway in the same FEAN-SZ patients across multi

SUBMITTER: Cai H 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5864547 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature