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Cathy G. McAllister, PhD; Mark Hyman Rapaport, MD; David Pickar, MD; Teresa A. Podruchny; George Christison, MD; Larry D. Alphs, MD; Steven M. Paul, MD

Arch Gen Psychiatry. 1989;46(10):890-894.

Abstract
• Autoimmune mechanisms have been postulated to play a role in the pathogenesis of schizophrenia. Recently, increased numbers of B lymphocytes expressing the CD5 (Leu-1) surface antigen have been observed in patients with certain autoimmune diseases. In the present study, approximately 30% of schizophrenic patients (11/34) were found by cytofluorometric methods to have similarly increased levels of circulating CD⁵ B cells compared with 6% (2/33) of healthy individuals and 5% (1/20) of patients with bipolar affective disorder. In schizophrenic patients with a "high" CD⁵ B-cell phenotype, the percentage of B cells expressing the CD5 surface marker (mean + SEM, 52.4% + 3.5%) was comparable to that reported for patients with rheumatoid arthritis and significantly greater than that reported for patients with bipolar affective disorder (25.7%±2.5%) and healthy controls (31.0% ±1.8%). Schizophrenic patients with high levels of CD⁵ B cells had increased numbers of total B cells compared with control subjects and patients with low levels of CD⁵ B cells. An elevation in CD5⁺ B cells may delineate a subgroup of schizophrenic patients whose disease has an underlying autoimmune and/or genetic cause.

Author Affiliations
From the Clinical Neuroscience Branch, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, Md (Drs McAllister, Rapaport, Pickar, and Paul and Ms Podruchny); St Elizabeth's Hospital, Washington, DC (Dr Christison); and the Maryland Psychiatric Research Center, Baltimore (Dr Alphs).

Footnotes
Accepted for publication March 28, 1989.

Reprint requests to Clinical Neuroscience Branch, National Institute of Mental Health, Bldg 10, Room 4N214, 9000 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD 20892 (Dr McAllister).

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ABSTRACT