Increased D-amino acid oxidase expression in the bilateral hippocampal CA4 of schizophrenic patients: a post-mortem study

Habl, G., Zink, M., Petroianu, G., Bauer, M., Schneider-Axmann, T., von Wilmsdorff, M., Falkai, P., Henn, F. A., Schmitt, A. (December 2009) Increased D-amino acid oxidase expression in the bilateral hippocampal CA4 of schizophrenic patients: a post-mortem study. J Neural Transm, 116 (12). pp. 1657-65. ISSN 0300-9564

Abstract

An important risk gene in schizophrenia is D-: amino acid oxidase (DAAO). To establish if expression of DAAO is altered in cortical, hippocampal or thalamic regions of schizophrenia patients, we measured gene expression of DAAO in a post-mortem study of elderly patients with schizophrenia and non-affected controls in both hemispheres differentiating between gray and white matter. We compared cerebral post-mortem samples (granular frontal cortex BA9, middle frontal cortex BA46, superior temporal cortex BA22, entorhinal cortex BA28, sensoric cortex BA1-3, hippocampus (CA4), mediodorsal nucleus of the thalamus) from 10 schizophrenia patients to 13 normal subjects investigating gene expression of DAAO in the gray and white matter of both hemispheres of the above-mentioned brain regions by in situ-hybridization. We found increased expression of DAAO-mRNA in the hippocampal CA4 of schizophrenic patients. Compared to the control group, both hemispheres of the hippocampus of schizophrenic patients showed an increased expression of 46% (right, P = 0.013) and 54% (left, P = 0.019), respectively. None of the other regions examined showed statistically significant differences in DAAO expression. This post-mortem study demonstrated increased gene expression of DAAO in the left and right hippocampus of schizophrenia patients. This increased expression could be responsible for a decrease in local D-: serine levels leading to a NMDA-receptor hypofunction that is hypothesized to play a major role in the pathophysiology of schizophrenia. However, our study group was small and results should be verified using larger samples.

Item Type: Paper
Uncontrolled Keywords: Aged Cerebral Cortex/enzymology/metabolism D-Amino-Acid Oxidase/genetics/*metabolism Dentate Gyrus/*enzymology/metabolism Female Functional Laterality Gene Expression Humans In Situ Hybridization Male Nerve Fibers, Myelinated/enzymology/metabolism Nerve Fibers, Unmyelinated/enzymology/metabolism RNA, Messenger/metabolism Schizophrenia/*enzymology/genetics/metabolism Thalamus/enzymology/metabolism
Subjects: diseases & disorders > mental disorders > schizophrenia
organs, tissues, organelles, cell types and functions > tissues types and functions > hippocampus
CSHL Authors:
Communities: CSHL labs > Henn lab
Depositing User: Matt Covey
Date: December 2009
Date Deposited: 06 Jun 2014 18:12
Last Modified: 06 Jun 2014 18:12
PMCID: PMC2776935
Related URLs:
URI: https://repository.cshl.edu/id/eprint/30260

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