Brain’s immune cells hyperactive in schizophrenia

New research links the onset of psychosis to the brain's inflammatory response

The brain's immune cells are hyperactive in people who are at risk of developing schizophrenia, as well as during the earliest stages of the disease, according to a new study by researchers at the MRC Clinical Sciences Centre in London. The findings, published today in the American Journal of Psychiatry, suggest that inflammatory processes play an important role in the development of the disease, and raise the possibility that it could be treated with drugs that block or reduce this cellular response.

Schizophrenia is a severe mental illness that affects about 1 in 100 people, and is characterised by symptoms such as auditory and visual hallucinations, and delusions of paranoia or grandeur. People with the disease may hear voices in their head, or believe that other people are controlling their thoughts, or are trying to hurt them.