Project Summary

Ravinder Reddy, M.D. (Independent Investigator 2004) of Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic and University of Pittsburgh, aims to study if lower levels of polyunsaturated fatty acids in pregnant women with schizophrenia (PUFA) may be responsible for some of the problems they experience, such as preterm delivery and low birth weight babies. PUFA are present in cell membranes, including the brain, and are crucial for normal brain function and development. The two main types of PUFA - omega-3 fatty acids and omega-6 fatty acids - are taken up through diet only, and in developing fetuses these PUFA have to be provided by the mother; leading to lower PUFA levels in mothers. Men and women with schizophrenia have lower membrane PUFA levels, before and after treatment with antipsychotics. In her proposed two-year study, Dr. Reddy wants to examine the effects pregnancy may have on the PUFA levels in 30 pregnant women with schizophrenia and 30 pregnant women without schizophrenia. She also will assay PUFA levels in their offspring. If there are greater reductions in PUFA during pregnancy in women with schizophrenia, and that these alterations are associated with negative pregnancy outcomes or worsening of their psychiatric status, then the possibility of providing readily available PUFA supplementation can be considered. Further, if the offspring of women with schizophrenia have lower PUFA levels, then this will provide justification for monitoring these children in order to prevent the development of schizophrenia later in life or to reduce its severity.

Program Area: SCHIZOPHRENIA/PSYCHOTIC DISORDERS\Schizophrenia

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