This Article  • References  • Full text PDF  • Reply to article  • Send to a friend  • Save in My Folder  • Save to citation manager  • Permissions  Citing Articles  • Citation map  • Citing articles on HighWire  • Contact me when this article is cited  Related Content  • Similar articles in this journal  Social Bookmarking   What's this?

Primary or Secondary Role?

Fritz A. Henn, PhD, MD
Department of Psychiatry Central Institute of Mental Health J5 Mannheim D-68159 Germany

Arch Gen Psychiatry. 1995;52(12):1008-1010.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text PDF and any section headings.

The Article by Olney and Farber¹ elaborates a hypothesis concerning the role of decreased N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor function as an etiological factor in schizophrenia. The novel feature of this hypothesis is that the postulated structural lesion, due to attenuated NMDA receptor function, can potentially reconcile the age of onset data² with the hypothesis that early neurodevelopmental disturbances underlie schizophrenic symptom production.^3,4 The fact that the psychotic phase of the disorder is usually initially manifest in the early adult years is at variance with the hypothesis that the lesion leading to psychosis may occur as early as the second trimester of pregnancy. A potential solution is suggested through results of animal studies reported by Farber et al,⁵ showing that structural damage due to NMDA antagonists such as phencyclidine hydrochloride (PCP) is not found experimentally until after puberty. These results and the psychotomimetic effect of PCP prompted Olney . . . [Full Text PDF of this Article]

CiteULike    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter     What's this?