"Mini brain" provides clues to the origin of early life in schizophrenia

According to a new study by Weill Cornell medical researchers, in the first month of embryonic development, multiple changes in brain cells may lead to schizophrenia in the future

The researchers’ research was published in the November 17th issue of Molecular Psychiatry.

"This discovery fills an important gap in scientists' understanding of schizophrenia," said Dilek Colak, assistant professor of neuroscience and senior author at the Phil Family Brain and Psychology Institute and the Weill Cornell School of Medicine Neurogenetics Center.

"There are signs that schizophrenia begins in early developmental stages, but we have no evidence," Dr.

By cultivating organoids from stem cells collected from as many as 21 human stem cell donors, a team led by the first author Dr.

"We found a common pathology in all patients with schizophrenia, even though each patient has different disease manifestations," said Dr.

In the samples of schizophrenia patients, the expression of two genes essential for brain development has decreased.

"We have made a basic discovery that provides the first evidence that we believe that multiple cell-specific mechanisms exist in human tissues that may lead to the risk of schizophrenia

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In addition to helping scientists better understand schizophrenia, Dr.

"This technology can be used to study the early pathology of late-onset neuropsychiatric or neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer's disease or Huntington's disease," said Dr.