Project Summary

Shanthini Sockanathan, Ph.D. (Young Investigator 2004) of Johns Hopkins University, notes that studies have shown that the regions of the brain affected in people with schizophrenia also usually contain retinoic acid, a key molecule involved in developmental processes within the central nervous system. She will therefore investigate whether disrupting retinoic acid signaling will mimic abnormalities seen in schizophrenia by genetically disrupting retinoid signaling in mice embryos and examining the outcomes of the disturbances at certain points in brain development. Using state-of-the-art genetic tools, she will induce the expression of a modified retinoid receptor that effectively destroys retinoid signaling within the forebrain cell of mouse embryos. She will then be able to examine the effects of loss of retinoid signaling on distinct aspects of forebrain development (ranging from early to late events), thus shedding light on the molecular basis of schizophrenia.

Program Area: SCHIZOPHRENIA/PSYCHOTIC DISORDERS\Schizophrenia

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