Metabolic Changes in Schizophrenia and Human Brain Evolution
Author Information
Author(s): Khaitovich Philipp, Lockstone Helen E, Wayland Matthew T, Tsang Tsz M, Jayatilaka Samantha D, Guo Arfu J, Zhou Jie, Somel Mehmet, Harris Laura W, Holmes Elaine, Pääbo Svante, Bahn Sabine
Primary Institution: Partner Institute for Computational Biology, Shanghai Institutes for Biological Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Hypothesis
If a cognitive disorder, such as schizophrenia, affects recently evolved biological processes underlying human-specific cognitive abilities, we anticipate finding a significant overlap between the recent evolutionary and the pathological changes.
Conclusion
The study suggests that changes in human brain metabolism may have been an important step in the evolution of human cognitive abilities.
Supporting Evidence
- The study found significant differences in metabolite concentrations between schizophrenia patients and healthy controls.
- Six biological processes related to energy metabolism were significantly enriched in genes differentially expressed in schizophrenia.
- The findings suggest that energy metabolism may play a crucial role in human cognitive functions.
Takeaway
This study looks at how changes in brain metabolism might be linked to both human evolution and schizophrenia, suggesting that our brains may have reached their energy limits.
Methodology
The study compared gene expression and metabolite concentrations in the brains of schizophrenia patients and healthy controls, as well as in non-human primates.
Potential Biases
Potential confounding factors such as medication effects on schizophrenia patients.
Limitations
The study is based on a limited number of metabolites and post mortem brain samples.
Participant Demographics
10 schizophrenia patients and 12 healthy controls, along with samples from 5 chimpanzees and 6 rhesus macaques.
Statistical Information
P-Value
p<0.05
Statistical Significance
p<0.05
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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