A Brief History of Schizophrenia Research

The neuropathology of schizophrenia has been discussed in various editions of Greenfield's Neuropathology. In the 1976 version, published in London, Jan Corsellis wrote a chapter entitled "Psychoses of obscure pathology". The neuropathology of schizophrenia is very controversial.
Gliosis

A number of brilliant researchers have reported gliosis. These reports date back to Alzheimer. Nieto & Escobar (1972), Fisman (1975), and Stevens (1982) found gliosis, which proves the popular (but false) neurodevelopmental theory to be wrong. Stevens found fibrillary gliosis, which she felt was reactive astrocytosis, in 70% of her cases of schizophrenia. This supports a neurodegenerative process. She found gliosis in the diencephalic regions.

Electron Microscopy

Castillo of Cuba has reported "tissue morphological alterations through electron microscopy techniques". Castillo suggested "complex mechanisms" in the "different pathological, inflammatory ..." processes. Castillo, of Havana, reported schizophrenia as "an organic brain disease where limbic structures are involved".

In 1977 Castillo started electron microscopy studies of the brain. He found nuclear bodies, membrane cell proliferation and particles. After this he switched to studying platelet alterations. He reported "a biological marker for schizophrenia".

Castillo

Fortunately Castillo's work has been translated into English.

My interpretation of his data is different from his interpretation. We both agree that schizophrenic is an organic disease of the brain. I see it as being metabolic. He suspected a virus, but I see an error in glucose metabolism.

In my opinion the giant platelets reflect the fact that the cells are over-eating some macronutrients, perhaps amino acids. The vacuoles could be either fat or amino acids.

Biochemistry

In 1990 Swartz & Breen of the Chicago Medical School reported high LDH (lactate dehydrogenase) levels in mania. This is an enzyme. Biological research on mental diseases dates back to Meynert in the 19^th century. Theodor Meynert was born in 1833 and died in 1892. Meynert was from Vienna, Austria.

Meynert favored cortical localization. Meynert tried to make psychiatry an exact science based on brain pathology. Seitelberger (1997) called Meynert "the founder of scientific brain research".
MELAS

MELAS is short for "mitochondrial encephalomyopathy with lactic acidosis and stroke-like episodes". There is a "schizophrenia-like mental disorder and progressive dementia" according to Mizukami et al (1992). There are "abnormal mitochondria". There is diffuse "fibrillary gliosis" in the brain. This is the same type of pathology repeatedly reported in schizophrenia by Stevens, Nieto & Escobar, Fisman, Gurd, Southard, and other brilliant neuropathologists.

The Japanese scientists considered the findings due to "metabolic disturbances".

This appears to suggest that mental disorder may be similar. A lactic acidosis would explain the high LDH reported by the Chicago group.

Riazantseva et al (2001)

This Russian report claimed "erythrocyte aggregation" in "paranoid schizophrenia".

Kut'ko et al (1997)

These Russian scientists reported abnormal "energy metabolism in schizophrenia patients". "The patients showed lowering of ATP level..." There was "accumulation in blood of lactic and pyruvic acids." This appears to confirm earlier work at McLean Hospital by Henneman et al.

Novitskii et al (2000)

This Siberian group reported abnormal "blood erythrocytes in patients with mental diseases". "Maximum decrease in the number of biconcave diskocytes and accumulation of transitional, prehemolytic, and degenerative forms of erythrocytes were found in schizophrenia."Conclusions

The swelling up of the red blood cells suggests that the cells are over-eating some macronutrients. This is consistent with elevated lactic and pyruvic acids. If the cells were eating excess glucose, there would probably be increased ATP. The decreased ATP indicates that something has gone wrong with energy metabolism. As much energy metabolism takes place in the mitochondria, something may be wrong with the mitochondria.

It appears that metabolic disturbances in the brain cause schizophrenia. The situation is not hopeless, however. Metabolic disturbances in diabetes are treatable by diet. This may also be true in schizophrenia. More research is needed.

Dr. Mesa of Cuba has developed a biological test for schizophrenia based on a microcopic evaluation of the blood platelets.

For further information consult the bibliography.

Bibliography

1. www.associatedcontent.com/article/754463/mental_health_science.html

2. http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/754745/histopathology_as_an_approach_to_schizophrenia.html

3. www.associatedcontent.com/article/754821/the_pathological_anatomy_of_schizophrenia.html

4. www.associatedcontent.com/article/748865/schizophrenia_as_an_encephalopathy.html