1. Th17 and MAIT cell mediated inflammation in antipsychotic free schizophrenia patients
- Author
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Ruthu Nagaraju, Monojit Debnath, Chakrakodi N. Varun, Raju Ravikumar, Shivarama Varambally, Manjunatha M. Venkataswamy, Ganesan Venkatasubramanian, and Vasanthapuram Ravi
- Subjects
Adult ,Male ,Adolescent ,medicine.medical_treatment ,Lymphocyte ,Population ,Central nervous system ,Inflammation ,behavioral disciplines and activities ,Peripheral blood mononuclear cell ,Mucosal-Associated Invariant T Cells ,Pathogenesis ,Young Adult ,03 medical and health sciences ,0302 clinical medicine ,Immune system ,mental disorders ,medicine ,Humans ,Antipsychotic ,education ,Biological Psychiatry ,Psychiatric Status Rating Scales ,Immunity, Cellular ,education.field_of_study ,business.industry ,Middle Aged ,030227 psychiatry ,Psychiatry and Mental health ,medicine.anatomical_structure ,Immunology ,Schizophrenia ,Th17 Cells ,Female ,medicine.symptom ,business ,030217 neurology & neurosurgery ,Antipsychotic Agents - Abstract
The immune hypothesis of schizophrenia has gained significant popularity in recent years in schizophrenia research. Evidence suggests that the peripheral immune system communicates with central nervous system and the effect propagates through microglial and lymphocyte crosstalk, especially during neuro-inflammation. Although, there is previous literature indicating changes in lymphocyte population in schizophrenia, detailed studies with respect to T and B cells are scarce. Mucosal associated invariant T (MAIT) cells are functionally associated with the gut microbiome. The gut microbiome has been implicated in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia. However, there is no information on the frequency of MAIT cells in schizophrenia. Hence, we investigated changes in proportions of T cells, B cells and MAIT cells in peripheral blood mononuclear cells derived from antipsychotic-free patients with schizophrenia in comparison to healthy controls. In line with earlier reports, we noted perturbations in Th17 cells. This study for the first time reports changes in frequencies of MAIT cells in a homogenous population of antipsychotic-free patients with schizophrenia. These changes, though not common across all patients nevertheless point to the fact that inflammation is prevalent in a significant subset of schizophrenia cases.
- Published
- 2019