Epigenetics, Stress, and Their Potential Impact on Brain Network Function: A Focus on the Schizophrenia Diatheses

The current thinking on the etiology of schizophrenia is the diatheses-stress model, which suggests that a genetic vulnerability (diatheses) is triggered by environmental stress (the leading candidates after birth are neglect and/or sexual and physical abuse) and develops into schizophrenia at some point in the person’s life (generally between 15-35).

Recent findings suggest there are at least 108 genes associated with schizophrenia, which only shows the complexity of this particular illness (with at least 108 genes playing a role, the possible combinations of genes either turned or off to produce the symptoms of the disease are staggering).

Further, this topic is confounded by the evidence that genes involved in schizophrenia are also involved in bipolar disorder and alcoholism, another gene links schizophrenia to cannabis addiction, still others link schizophrenia to anxiety disorders or depression/mood disorders and suicide, or that a combination of a particular virus in the mother and a specific gene variant in the child, not to mention the oft reported links between schizophrenia and creativity (often attributed to defective genes in the dopaminergic system) [Richards, R. (2000-2001). Creativity and the Schizophrenia Spectrum: More and More Interesting. Creativity Research Journal; 13(1): 111–132].

This article extends the considerable evidence for stress-related triggers of genetic vulnerabilities in the epigenetic etiology of schizophrenia.

4 Likes

I’ve tried to get through the entire article. I’m glad these links are being studied. Thank you for posting this one.

A good topic, I know that my sz was triggered by stress when I had developed this very paranoid view of the life. I have talked about this earlier.

Very interesting stuff @firemonkey - thanks for the info

i just started reading this book