TNF-alpha and IL-6 are associated with the deficit syndrome and negative symptoms in patients with chronic schizophrenia

• Type of Material: Article
• Authors: David Goldsmith, Emory University; Ebrahim Haroon, Emory University; Gregory P. Strauss, University of Georgia; Peter F. Buckley, Virginia Commonwealth University; Andrew Miller, Emory University
• Language: English
• Date: 2018-09-01
• Publisher: Elsevier Science BV
• Publication Version: Author Accepted Manuscript (After Peer Review)
• Copyright Statement: © 2018 Elsevier B.V.
• License: Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 4.0 International
• Final Published Version (URL): http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.schres.2018.02.048
• Title of Journal or Parent Work: Schizophrenia Research
• Volume: 199
• Start Page: 281
• End Page: 284
• Grant/Funding Information: Supported in part by the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences of the National Institutes of Health under Award Number UL1TR002378 and Award Number KL2TR002381.
• Keywords: Negative symptoms; Psychiatry; Schizophrenia; ABNORMALITIES; OLANZAPINE; CYTOKINE ALTERATIONS; Life Sciences & Biomedicine; Deficit syndrome; Inflammation; NONDEFICIT SCHIZOPHRENIA; Science & Technology; SERUM-LEVELS; DISORDERS; Cytokines; DEPRESSION; METAANALYSIS; REWARD; PSYCHOSIS

Abstract

Introduction: Increased inflammatory markers have been found in patients with chronic schizophrenia, and have been associated with negative symptoms. The deficit syndrome is a distinct subtype of schizophrenia, characterized by primary and enduring negative symptoms. Method: We measured inflammatory markers in patients with and without deficit schizophrenia and controls. Results: Using multivariate analyses, tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α and interleukin-6 were associated with the deficit syndrome, and TNF-α predicted blunted affect, alogia, and total negative symptoms. Conclusions: Findings suggest that deficit schizophrenia subtype is associated with increased inflammation and immunotherapies may be a novel target for negative symptoms.