Schizophrenia is a common but severe debilitating adult-onset mental illness characterized by hallucinations (e.g. hearing voices), delusions (e.g. believing that you are being followed), lack of desire to accomplish goals or form social relationships. Another core feature of schizophrenia is poor cognition (affecting memory, IQ or attention). Current treatments are only partially effective. Schizophrenia is strongly genetic so I plan to study DNA and genes to understand the biology involved. In the absence of biomarkers for schizophrenia, genetics represents a vital tool for understanding disease biology. New research has identified that many genes regulated by a protein called SATB2 contribute to schizophrenia risk. SATB2 organizes the wiring of the brain during development by acting as a “controller” gene that regulates the functions of hundreds of other genes. Studies in mice indicate that SATB2 also affects learning and memory. My research aims to understand how SATB2-regulated genes impact different symptoms within schizophrenia. I plan to quantify the contribution that SATB2-regulated genes are making to measures of positive symptoms, negative symptoms and cognitive function in an Irish schizophrenia patient sample. The planned studies will uncover new knowledge about the involvement of SATB2-regulated genes in schizophrenia and offer targets for development of new therapies that are badly needed.
