A study of 242 infants and 423 adults finds that placental gene-expression loci that are correlated with schizophrenia are also negatively correlated with neonatal brain volume and early cognitive development, that the link is stronger in males than in females, and that the link may be unique to schizophrenia among other developmental disorders; the results suggest that although the majority of people with schizophrenia-associated placental gene expression will develop normally, early life complications, in conjunction with the risk factors of placental gene expression, could lead to neurodevelopmental illness.
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Article #20-19789: "Placental genomic risk scores and early neurodevelopmental outcomes," by Gianluca Ursini et al.
MEDIA CONTACT: Becky Oldham, Lieber Institute for Brain Development, Baltimore, MD; email: <media@libd.org>
Journal
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences