Year: 2013
Type: article
Abstract: For years, studies have been conducted to treat the positive and negative symptoms and cognitive deficits of schizophrenia; it has allowed to treat the positive symptoms through regulation of dopaminergic neurons and dopamine pathways; however, we still do not know how to treat the negative symptoms and cognitive deficits. The reason we cannot treat them is due to a lack of adequate understanding of the underlying pathology which manifests itself in the behavior. Over the years, there have been multiple proposed hypotheses regarding the underlying pathology, and accordingly, medication were developed to regulate the variety of pathways in the brain but each of them has failed. Under the mentorship of Dr. Behnam Ghasemzadeh, experiments are being conducted to regulate the activity of KCNQ potassium ion channel to ameliorate the negative symptoms and cognitive deficits of schizophrenia. The experiments are being conducted using animal-models of schizophrenia like-effect. The results suggest that decrease in the activity of the KCNQ potassium channels, leading to an increase in the neuronal activity, may be able to treat the symptoms of schizophrenia.
Author: A Bano
Language: English
Subfield: Psychiatry and Mental health
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W169977716