Schizophrenia

The general public often associates schizophrenia with violent and unpredictable behaviour, although only a small percentage of those who suffer from the disease actually exhibit such conspicuous symptoms. One per cent of the German population develop schizophrenia at least once in their lives.

Geneticists and psychiatrists have known for a long time that schizophrenia is not only determined by psychic and societal factors but that a higher susceptibility to schizophrenia is also hereditary, i.e. that the genetic information on the genes influences whether a patient is more or less at risk.

In search of the decisive "schizophrenia gene", numerous research teams have identified several genes that influence schizophrenia (see: Overview over schizophrenia genes). Thus far, four schizophrenia genes have been confirmed scientifically.

However, research is still only at the beginning. Further genes are under consideration, and even those already identified only indicate an increased propensity to schizophrenia among specific groups of the population. This is the reason why the dysbindin gene already identified as a potential cause of schizophrenia could not be associated with the disease with 100% certainty in German patients.

By contrast, a Swedish study came to the conclusion that persons were six times as likely to develop the disease if there was a family history of the condition. The relative risks published in the various studies also differ widely. The individual genes' contribution to the incidence of schizophrenia still needs to be clarified as well.