Membrane phospholipid abnormalities in postmortem brains from schizophrenic patients

Previous studies in schizophrenia have shown alterations in membrane phosph olipids and polyunsaturated fatty acids. However, these studies have primar ily examined peripheral (non-neuronal) cell types. The purpose of the prese nt study was to examine whether the membrane deficits seen in peripheral ti ssues are also observed in the brain. The caudate was the primary region of interest for this study. Using high-pressure liquid chromatography in conj unction with an evaporative light-scattering detector, we first measured th e level of various membrane phospholipids (PL) in schizophrenic (n = 11) an d control groups with (n = 7) and without (n = 14) other mental disorders. Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs) were then determined by capillary gas c hromatography. Within groups, there are no significant correlations between membrane PL levels and other collection and demographic parameters includi ng age, postmortem interval, storage time and brain weight. Significantly l ower amounts of phosphatidylcholine and phosphatidylethanolamine were found in postmortem brain tissue from schizophrenic patients than in those from control groups, even after accounting for potential confounds. In addition, strong reductions of total PUFAs and saturated fatty acids were found in s chizophrenic brains, relative to control brains. Specifically, the reduced PUFAs were largely attributable to decreases in arachidonic acid (AA) and, to a lesser extent, its precursors, linoleic and eicosadienoic acids. There are no significant differences between the control groups with and without other mental disorders. The present findings suggest that deficits identif ied in peripheral membranes may also be present in the brain from schizophr enic patients. Such a deficit in membrane AA may contribute to the many bio logical, physiological, and clinical phenomena observed in schizophrenia. ( C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.