Viral Infections and Schizophrenia: A Comprehensive Review

Overview

Journal Viruses

Publisher MDPI

Specialty Microbiology

Date 2023 Jun 28

PMID 37376644

Authors

Ioanna Kotsiri

Panagiota Resta

Alexandros Spyrantis

Charalampos Panotopoulos

Dimitrios Chaniotis

Apostolos Beloukas

Emmanouil Magiorkinis

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Schizophrenia is a complex mental disorder with multiple genetic and environmental factors contributing to its pathogenesis. Viral infections have been suggested to be one of the environmental factors associated with the development of this disorder. We comprehensively review all relevant published literature focusing on the relationship between schizophrenia and various viral infections, such as influenza virus, herpes virus 1 and 2 (HSV-1 and HSV-2), cytomegalovirus (CMV), Epstein-Barr virus (EBV), retrovirus, coronavirus, and Borna virus. These viruses may interfere with the normal maturation of the brain directly or through immune-induced mediators, such as cytokines, leading to the onset of schizophrenia. Changes in the expression of critical genes and elevated levels of inflammatory cytokines have been linked to virally-induced infections and relevant immune activities in schizophrenia. Future research is necessary to understand this relationship better and provide insight into the molecular mechanisms underlying the pathophysiology of schizophrenia.

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